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Avalanche Forecast

Archived

Jan 8th, 2021–Jan 9th, 2021

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

Blue skies and Moderate ratings encourage boldness. Remember to inspect the snowpack regularly and make smart terrain choices. Well supported and sheltered terrain will offer good skiing.

Confidence

High -

Weather Forecast

We're on a roll. Another nice day is expected tomorrow, although the morning will be chilly. -18C as a low and -8C as a high. Alpine winds will increase slightly, but for the most part they will be calm down low. And of course the trade off for blue skies is no new snow.

Avalanche Summary

Nothing new was seen today.

Snowpack Summary

The overnight temps were in the -20's last night (Thursday night) and kickstarted the surface faceting and surface hoar growth. The top 20cm is low density and offers good skiing in treeline areas. In valley bottoms the surface hoar is growing, up to 10mm in places. Our trip today was near Purple Knob. We only travelled up to treeline, but noticed a variable depth snowpack. In many places it was only 60-80cm with a poor base. In the deeper areas the midpack was solid feeling with some noticeable buried windslabs. 

Terrain and Travel

  • Avoid areas where the snow feels stiff and/or slabby.
  • Be alert to conditions that change with elevation and wind exposure.

Problems

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.