Persistent Slabs
N
NE
E
SE
S
SW
W
NW
- Alpine
- Treeline
- Below treeline
- Likelihood
- Possible
- Size
- 1.5–2.5
The persistent layer is down roughly 100cm. North aspects is where this layer has been most active.
Avalanche forecast
View on mapKananaskis
Apr 22 – 23, 2023Avalanche Canada
Archived · expired 3 years ago
Avalanche danger
Mon
Tue
Alpine
2 · Moderate
Treeline
2 · Moderate
Below
1 · Low
Highlights
Freezing levels are starting to creep up, 2500m today. Reports of ok skiing still being found on polar aspects.
Avalanche problems
Deep Persistent Slabs
NNEESESSWWNW- Alpine
- Treeline
- Below treeline
- Likelihood
- Possible
- Size
- 2–3.5
Shallow snowpack areas are an area of special concern, especially with intense solar radiation and/or daytime heating.
Great evidence of this problem avalanching is easy to find along the spray road right now.
Confidence
Moderate
Avalanche Summary
No field teams today.
No avalanches reported.
Snowpack Summary
15-20 cm snow from last week overlies a variety of surfaces such as wind slabs and melt/freeze crusts. Sheltered areas and polar aspects will provide the best skiing with little wind effect. Be aware of sluffing on solar aspects if the sun comes out. Forecasters continue to track persistent weaknesses down anywhere from 40 to 100cm on polar aspects. These weaknesses are highly variable in nature and travelers should take the time to dig down and evaluate the snowpack frequently. Also, the lingering deep persistent slab problem is still alive and well.
Weather Summary
Sunday will see sunny periods with the possibility of some flurries.
Freezing levels will rise up to 2300m and the winds will be out of the Southwest.
More details can be found in the Mountain Weather Forecast.
Terrain and Travel Advice
- Avoid steep slopes when air temperatures are warm, or solar radiation is strong.
- In areas where deep persistent slabs may exist, avoid shallow or variable depth snowpacks and unsupported terrain features.