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Avalanche Forecast

Archived

Nov 22nd, 2019–Nov 23rd, 2019

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

Regions

Kananaskis.

Strong SW winds have arrived with the Chinook flow. Sheltered areas will hold the best potential for early season turns but with the limited options out there right now, popular places have been heavily skied! Hope for a bit of a re-set to the skiing on Sunday! 

Confidence

Moderate -

Weather Forecast

Saturday will likely see warm temps and strong winds continue with no much in the way of new snow. More snow is forecast to begin overnight on Saturday and give us 10-15cm by Sunday afternoon

Avalanche Summary

No new avalanches were observed. 

Snowpack Summary

Strong winds today developed new windslabs in Alpine terrain and even down to treeline in some areas. These new windslabs can be found along ridgecrests and crossloaded gully features.  

Two main persistent concerns in the snowpack at this time. The October crust just off the ground down 50-60cm and the November Crust down 10-20cm. Both will be long term problems.

Snowpack video update here  

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.