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Avalanche Forecast

Archived

Jan 23rd, 2020–Jan 24th, 2020

Alpine
Natural avalanches possible, human triggered probable.
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.

Consistent weather is slowly improving our snowpack, but big terrain and paths that haven't avalanched are still worth some thought before jumping in.

Confidence

No Rating -

Weather Forecast

Flurries throughout the weekend with a slightly stronger pulse on Sunday. Tomorrow's high will be -3. 20-30km/hr winds with gusts up to 50 at treeline.

Avalanche Summary

Nothing new today.

Snowpack Summary

Yesterday saw another 10cm of snow on the Spray Road. Today, winds at all elevations blew this snow around to form drifts and windslabs. Ski tests didn't show an obvious weak bond, but in steep areas that would have stiffer slabs underneath, the bond could be poor. The Dec 11th layer is down 50cm, and so far unreactive. Having said that, surface hoar is notorious for "waking up" and becoming a problem. The deep layers are still there. The alpine, thin snowpack areas are the probable places to have it become a problem.

Terrain and Travel

  • This avalanche problem is difficult to trigger but if so, consequences are serious.

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.

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.