Register for an account and never miss a forecast again!
RegisterRegister for an account and never miss a forecast again!
RegisterJan 21st, 2026–Jan 22nd, 2026
Little Yoho, Kootenay, Lake Louise, Sunshine, West Side 93N, Field.
This zone has been separated, as it generally has a deeper snowpack where basal weaknesses are not a problem.
The Jan 3 surface hoar is spotty in distribution and buried 50-70 cm deep. It still produces hard, sudden planar test results, but no avalanches have been observed, and it has been removed as a persistent problem.
No new avalanches reported in this region, and none observed on the East side in a flight to Mt Wilson on Jan 21.
On Tuesday, at 2450 m, on a thinner windward cross-loaded slope, just outside the Lake Louise ski area boundary, one person triggered a size 2 on the basal facets, which is more prevalent east of the Continental Divide.
Surface hoar growth and faceting are widespread. Constant moderate to strong winds have blasted the alpine snow surfaces. The surface facetting is helping to a degree by creating soft snow in some areas.
Deeper in the snowpack, the spotty Jan 3 layer of surface hoar, down 50-70 cm, is still producing moderate - hard, sudden planar test results suggesting it may be triggered on isolated steep treeline features, but no avalanches have been reported.
The strong ridge of high pressure dominating BC and AB remains stationary, with no change expected for at least another 6 days. Over the next week, expect clear skies, NW winds and cold temperatures, with lows on Thursday night down to -25. Weather models are calling for a pattern change starting around Tuesday, Jan 27, when the winds return to a westerly flow, temperatures moderate and light snow begins to fall.