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Avalanche Forecast

Archived

Apr 2nd, 2014–Apr 3rd, 2014

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

Regions

Little Yoho.

It's an uneasy time for avalanche prediction now because in some areas the danger is Low, while in others the danger is Considerable - meanwhile the ski quality is excellent. Be wary, we have seen at least one large avalanche every day this week.

Weather Forecast

Another storm is heading our way and should move into the region by mid-morning on Thursday. Expect strong westerly winds on the leading edge of the storm, with 10-15 cm expected by Friday. Temperatures should remain below freezing, except if the sunshine pokes through when suddenly things will feel really hot.

Snowpack Summary

Huge and important differences exist across the region now. Western areas such as Emerald and Field have a deep and stable snowpack. Contrast this with the Lake Louise and Sunshine areas, where the weaker snowpack is showing signs that the ground level layer of weak facets is waking up again - slowly. This layer has been dormant since February.

Avalanche Summary

Two new avalanches reported today - a size 2.5 failed on the ground layer from an explosive at the Lake Louise ski area, and a cornice failure on Mt. Rundle triggered an avalanche in the afternoon. Yesterday 4 separate avalanches were reported to have failed on the ground in shallow snowpack areas.

Confidence

Problems

Deep Persistent Slabs

Deep Persistent Slab avalanches are the release of a thick cohesive layer of hard snow (a slab), when the bond breaks between the slab and an underlying persistent weak layer deep in the snowpack. The most common persistent weak layers involved in deep, persistent slabs are depth hoar or facets surrounding a deeply buried crust. Deep Persistent Slabs are typically hard to trigger, are very destructive and dangerous due to the large mass of snow involved, and can persist for months once developed. They are often triggered from areas where the snow is shallow and weak, and are particularly difficult to forecast for and manage.

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.