Avalanche Forecast
Issued: Mar 19th, 2021 4:00PM
The alpine rating is , the treeline rating is , and the below treeline rating is
cgarritty,
Avalanche Canada
Exercise caution at low elevations where the snowpack is wet and lacks cohesion. Small wind slabs may form in the alpine with light new snow amounts.
Summary
Confidence
Weather Forecast
Friday night: Mainly cloudy. Moderate southwest winds. Freezing levels returning to near valley bottom.
Saturday: Mainly cloudy with isolated flurries. Moderate to strong southwest winds. Alpine high temperatures around -5 with freezing levels to 1600 metres.
Sunday: Cloudy with isolated flurries. Light to moderate southwest winds. Alpine high temperatures around -5.
Monday: Cloudy with scattered flurries bringing up to 5 cm of new snow, increasing a bit overnight. Light southwest winds. Alpine high temperatures around -5.
Avalanche Summary
No new avalanches have been reported in the region over the past few days.
Looking forward, cooling temperatures are expected to help lock down the snowpack in mid-elevation areas that have been wetted by rain. Light forecast snow amounts are not expected to be sufficient to form a new wind slab problem beyond isolated small slabs in leeward terrain features.
Snowpack Summary
Light new snow amounts have been accumulating over wind affected surfaces in the alpine while light rain has wet the snow surface below about 1700 metres. Forecast light flurries will add a bit of dry snow to this mix at all but lower elevations in the coming days.
Around 30 to 60 cm of snow sits above a layer of sugary faceted grains that were buried in mid-February. In some areas, there may be an old layer of feathery surface hoar or facets from late January down 50 to 80 cm deep. There have been no reported avalanches on either of these layers in the region since March 9th in the Crowsnest. Forecast cooling temperatures are expected to further decrease the likelihood of avalanches at these interfaces.
The mid pack is firm and well settled. Some faceted snow and a decomposing melt-freeze crust can be found near the base of the snowpack.
Terrain and Travel
- Be alert to conditions that change with elevation.
- Small avalanches can have serious consequences in extreme terrain. Carefully evaluate your line for wind slab hazard before you commit to it.
- Watch for unstable snow on specific terrain features, especially when the snow is moist or wet.
Valid until: Mar 20th, 2021 4:00PM
