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Avalanche Forecast

Archived

Feb 15th, 2025–Feb 16th, 2025

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

Akamina, Crowsnest North, Crowsnest South, Elkford East.

Storm slabs have been reactive - start with conservative terrain and watch for signs of instability.

For the best and safest riding, seek out areas of soft snow with no wind effect.

Confidence

Moderate

Avalanche Summary

On Friday, skiers cut several small (size 1) storm slabs and dry loose avalanches near Castle Mountain. On Thursday, a skier accidentally triggered a small size 1 wind slab in a fan feature on a northeast-facing alpine slope.

Looking forward, we expect the potential for triggering small storm slabs and loose dry avalanches will remain likely.

Snowpack Summary

Up to 20 cm of very low-density new snow fell in the last storm, accompanied by light to moderate northerly wind. An additional 5 to 10 cm may fall by the end of the day Sunday. The combined storm snow overlies 20 to 40 cm of mostly faceted snow sitting on a weak layer from late January. The weak layer consists of a crust on sun-exposed slopes and a layer of surface hoar on all other aspects. The mid and lower snowpack is generally well settled.

Weather Summary

Saturday Night

Cloudy with 0 to 3 cm of snow. 5 to 10 km/h west ridgetop wind. Treeline temperature -18 °C.

Sunday

Cloudy with 4 to 8 cm of snow. 5 to 15 km/h variable ridgetop wind. Treeline temperature -15 °C.

Monday

Partly cloudy with 0 to 3 cm of snow. 5 to 10 km/h northeast ridgetop wind. Treeline temperature -16 °C.

Tuesday

A mix of sun and clouds. 15 km/h northeast ridgetop wind. Treeline temperature -18 °C.

More details can be found in the Mountain Weather Forecast.

Terrain and Travel Advice

  • Keep your guard up as storm slabs may remain sensitive to human triggering.
  • Avoid freshly wind-loaded terrain features.
  • Use appropriate sluff management techniques.

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.

Loose Dry

Loose Dry avalanches are the release of dry unconsolidated snow and typically occur within layers of soft snow near the surface of the snowpack. These avalanches start at a point and entrain snow as they move downhill, forming a fan-shaped avalanche. Other names for loose-dry avalanches include point-release avalanches or sluffs.