Avalanche Forecast

Archived

Feb 20th, 2024–Feb 21st, 2024

Alpine

Natural avalanches unlikely, human triggered possible.

Treeline

Natural avalanches unlikely.

Below Treeline

Natural avalanches unlikely.

Alpine

Natural avalanches unlikely, human triggered possible.

Treeline

Natural avalanches unlikely.

Below Treeline

Natural avalanches unlikely.

Alpine

Natural avalanches unlikely, human triggered possible.

Treeline

Natural avalanches unlikely.

Below Treeline

Natural avalanches unlikely.

Regions

Kananaskis, Bow Valley, Highwood Pass, North 40, Spray - KLakes.

The best skiing can be found in sheltered areas at higher elevations.

Confidence

High

Avalanche Summary

No field teams today. No new avalanches reported.

Snowpack Summary

We are still seeing little to no wind affect at most elevations. The one exception would be high alpine ridges(2500m+) where isolated slabs may exist in the immediate lee. At treeline and low alpine elevations, there's 20-25cm's of nice, faceted snow resting on top of the Feb crust. The crust itself is generally supportive, but in the odd place at treeline, it's breakable and sometimes challenging to ski. From an avalanche perspective, the crust isn't posing a problem other than allowing the surface snow to sluff in very steep terrain. There's a thin film of a crust on steep sunny slopes that was formed by the clear weather over this past weekend. If the sun comes out, expect some moist snow to form on solar aspects.

Weather Summary

Wednesday will be a mixed bag of sun, cloud and isolated flurries for maybe a total of 2cm of snow. Temperatures in the alpine are expected to reach a high of -4c and winds will be moderate from the West.

More details can be found in the Mountain Weather Forecast.

Terrain and Travel Advice

Avoid areas with a thin or variable snowpack.
Back off if you encounter whumpfing, hollow sounds, or shooting cracks.
Pay attention to cornices and give them a wide berth when traveling on or below ridges.

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.

Persistent Slabs

Persistent Slab avalanches are the release of a cohesive layer of snow (a slab) in the middle to upper snowpack, when the bond to an underlying persistent weak layer breaks. Persistent layers include: surface hoar, depth hoar, near-surface facets, or faceted snow. Persistent weak layers can continue to produce avalanches for days, weeks or even months, making them especially dangerous and tricky. As additional snow and wind events build a thicker slab on top of the persistent weak layer, this avalanche problem may develop into a Deep Persistent Slab.