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Avalanche Forecast

Archived

Dec 8th, 2016–Dec 9th, 2016

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

Regions

Kananaskis.

COLD temps are forecast to continue for one more day before we start to see some new snow and an increase in the winds.

Confidence

Moderate - Due to the number of field observations on Thursday

Weather Forecast

Temps are going to start to get a bit warmer on Friday but its still gonna be COLD!  No new snow is expected until friday when we may get a few cm of new snow as a weak low pushes over the region.

Avalanche Summary

No new avalanches were observed on Thursday.

Snowpack Summary

Surface hoar is definetly growing on all aspects and in all elevations right now.  We still have concerns about windslabs along ridgelines and in immediate lees on all aspects in alpine terrain.  These slabs do not extend far down slope but they should be expected at higher elevations.  The nov 24th interface as well as the Nov 12th interface are still producing mixed results.  Be sure to dig down and evaluate this interface before you commit to a feature.

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.

Wind Slabs

Wind Slab avalanches are the release of a cohesive layer of snow (a slab) formed by the wind. Wind typically transports snow from the upwind sides of terrain features and deposits snow on the downwind side. Wind slabs are often smooth and rounded and sometimes sound hollow, and can range from soft to hard. Wind slabs that form over a persistent weak layer (surface hoar, depth hoar, or near-surface facets) may be termed Persistent Slabs or may develop into Persistent Slabs.