Avalanche Forecast

Nothing new today.

Today the forecasters went up towards the Dogleg and dug a profile at 2100m. There was 80cm of total snow with a fresh crop of surface hoar growing on the surface. The layer of concern is the November 16 surface hoar that was found sitting on the weak 50cm of basal facets. Check our Instagram video of some fascinating tests at: https://www.instagram.com/kananaskissafety/?hl=en

There is some variation in the snowpack depending whether you are on the east or west side of the Spray Lakes Road. There also might be a thin sun crust on solar aspects. What is consistent everywhere is that we have a really weak snowpack that consists of 50cm of facets on the ground with weak layers above that are either surface hoar and/or facets. With the nature of our persistently poor snowpack, any improvement will be measured in weeks, not days. As the surface snow stiffens (either from wind, temperature or settlement) it will bridge the weak layer below. This will give the illusion that our snowpack is improving, but in fact its actually going to be more reactive and unpredictable. The trick to managing our delicate snowpack will be monitoring the upper snowpack characteristics and using terrain to manage the uncertainty.

Tuesday morning will start off at -16c and warm up to -5c with flurries beginning in the afternoon. Winds will be moderate from the NW. Wednesday is forecasting for 7cm of snow.......

More details can be found in the Mountain Weather Forecast.

• Be especially cautious as you transition into wind affected terrain.
• Avoid convexities, steep unsupported terrain and rocky outcroppings.
• Avoid shallow, rocky areas where the snowpack transitions from thick to thin.
• Remote triggering is a concern, watch out for adjacent and overhead slopes.
• Watch for areas of hard wind slab on alpine features.