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Avalanche Forecast

Archived

Feb 6th, 2022–Feb 7th, 2022

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

Regions

Kananaskis.

Like an unwanted party guest, this ongoing wind is just plain annoying. It doesn't seem to want to leave, instead it just keeps raging into the wee hours of the morning. 

Confidence

Moderate -

Weather Forecast

Should I talk about wind now or later? Lets get it over with. Strong westerly winds again tomorrow with valley bottom gusts into the moderate range. There I said it. Moving on. We will hopefully get a few flurries that will leave behind 5cm or so by late in the day. Temperatures will be a pleasant -5 or so.

Avalanche Summary

Nothing new today, but there was some impressive wind transport and spindrift in the southern part of the region today. 

Snowpack Summary

The winds have done an impressive job of redistributing what little surface snow we have left. Windslabs are basically in any open terrain at any elevation. Needless to say they don't become a problem until treeline, but once the denser slabs are encountered they do pose an avalanche threat. They seem most problematic in immediate lee areas and crossloaded features. That's not to say open areas are smooth sailing. They also deserve some assessment and judgement. As for the deeper layers, so far so good. They are cooperating and don't appear to be a major issue yet.

Terrain and Travel

  • Be careful with wind slabs, especially in steep, unsupported and/or convex terrain features.
  • Approach lee and cross-loaded slopes with caution.

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.