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Avalanche Forecast

Archived

Jan 12th, 2021–Jan 13th, 2021

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

Regions

Kananaskis.

A significant storm is set to arrive Tuesday night into Wednesday morning. Avalanche hazard will rise rapidly. Avoid avalanche terrain.

Confidence

Moderate -

Weather Forecast

A Pineapple Express is pushing into the region Tuesday evening and into Wednesday. Between 30 and 40cm of new snow is expected with SW winds up to 120km/h and freezing levels near 1900m. A cooling and clearing trend are expected Thursday.

Avalanche Summary

Ski cutting in steep terrain below treeline produced small sluffs. A size 1.5 wind slab was observed coming off a treeline feature on the south aspect of Heros' Knob. Further details are unknown as the skies were somewhat obscured.

Snowpack Summary

3cm of new snow fell in the past 24hrs. The extreme SW winds continue, and have created widespread wind slabs at all elevations on south, north and east aspects. Only the most sheltered areas below treeline have escaped this. Today forecasters dug a pit at treeline and discovered multiple wind slab layers that all produced sudden planar failures at the different interfaces. In addition, ski cutting produced surface sluffing in steep sheltered terrain below treeline today indicating that the new snow is not bonding well to the old surface. If the forecasted snow arrives, these observations indicate that a natural avalanche cycle will occur at all elevations.

Terrain and Travel

  • Avoid all avalanche terrain during periods of strong wind.
  • Avoid areas where the snow feels stiff and/or slabby.
  • Be alert to conditions that change with elevation and wind exposure.
  • Watch for fresh storm slabs building throughout the day.

Problems

Storm Slabs

Storm Slab avalanches are the release of a cohesive layer (a slab) of new snow that breaks within new snow or on the old snow surface. Storm-slabs typically last between a few hours and few days (following snowfall). Storm-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.

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.