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Avalanche Forecast

Archived

Apr 17th, 2025–Apr 18th, 2025

Alpine
Natural avalanches unlikely, human triggered possible.
Treeline
Natural avalanches unlikely, human triggered possible.
Below Treeline
Natural avalanches unlikely.
Alpine
Natural avalanches unlikely.
Treeline
Natural avalanches unlikely.
Below Treeline
Natural avalanches unlikely.
Alpine
Natural avalanches unlikely.
Treeline
Natural avalanches unlikely.
Below Treeline
Natural avalanches unlikely.

Regions

Purcells, Dogtooth, East Purcell, Bull.

Step back into conservative terrain as rising temperatures and sunshine weaken the snowpack.

Avoid overhead exposure to cornices, and steep south facing slopes in the heat of the day

Confidence

Moderate

Avalanche Summary

No new avalanches were reported Wednesday.

Recent activity has been limited to size 2 cornice falls and a few wet loose avalanches. The only notable persistent slab in the past two weeks was rider-triggered near Wasa on Apr 11.

With rapid warming expected, avalanche activity is likely to increase.

Snowpack Summary

About 5 cm of recent snow sits above a hard melt-freeze crust on northerly alpine slopes. Elsewhere, the snow surface is expected to become moist from sun and warm temperatures.

The bottom half of the snowpack is generally weak and faceted. The snowpack at lower elevations is melting rapidly.

Weather Summary

Thursday Night

Clear skies. 10 to 20 km/h northwest ridgetop wind. Freezing level drops to 500 m.

Friday

Clear skies. 10 to 30 km/h west ridgetop wind. Treeline temperature +5 °C. Freezing level 2500 m.

Saturday

Mostly cloudy with flurries. 10 to 30 km/h west ridgetop wind. Treeline temperature 0 °C. Freezing level 2100 m.

Sunday

Mostly cloudy with 5 to 10 cm of snow. Light and variable wind. Treeline temperature 0 °C. Freezing level 2000 m.

More details can be found in the Mountain Weather Forecast.

Terrain and Travel Advice

  • Avalanche activity is unlikely when a thick melt-freeze crust is present on the snow surface.
  • Avoid shallow, rocky areas where the snowpack transitions from thick to thin.
  • Pay attention to cornices and give them a wide berth when traveling on or below ridges.
  • The more the snowpack warms up and weakens, the more conservative your terrain selection should be.

Problems

Persistent Slabs

Persistent Slab avalanches are the release of a cohesive layer of snow (a slab) in the middle to upper snowpack, when the bond to an underlying persistent weak layer breaks. Persistent layers include: surface hoar, depth hoar, near-surface facets, or faceted snow. Persistent weak layers can continue to produce avalanches for days, weeks or even months, making them especially dangerous and tricky. As additional snow and wind events build a thicker slab on top of the persistent weak layer, this avalanche problem may develop into a Deep Persistent Slab.

Loose Wet

Loose Wet avalanches are the release of wet unconsolidated snow or slush. These avalanches typically occur within layers of wet snow near the surface of the snowpack, but they may quickly gouge into lower snowpack layers. Like Loose Dry Avalanches, they start at a point and entrain snow as they move downhill, forming a fan-shaped avalanche. Other names for loose-wet avalanches include point-release avalanches or sluffs. Loose Wet avalanches can trigger slab avalanches that break into deeper snow layers.