Dashboard Regions Weather Stations Radar Alerts Glossary
Contact About
Log In

Register for an account and never miss a forecast again!

Register

Avalanche Forecast

Archived

Jan 4th, 2026–Jan 5th, 2026

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

Regions

Banff Yoho Kootenay, Little Yoho, Banff, East Side 93N, Kootenay, Lake Louise, LLSA, Sunshine, West Side 93N, Field.

Small inputs of new snow and SW wind are building fresh wind slabs to tree-line. Watch for loose dry avalanches in steep gullies and terrain traps.

Confidence

Moderate

  • Forecast snowfall amounts are uncertain.
  • Uncertainty is due to the fact that deep persistent slabs are particularly difficult to forecast.

Avalanche Summary

Sunshine patrol reported triggering small thin wind slabs in the new snow with explosives and ski cuts. No other avalanches were reported or observed.

Snowpack Summary

Up to 10 cm of new snow on Sunday with moderate/strong SW alpine winds now sit over previous surfaces, which include older windslabs, surface hoar to treeline, and some suncrust on steep solar aspects.

There is 40-80 cm over the Dec 15 melt-freeze crust, which is present to 1800-2000 m, and 80-160 cm over the November facet/crust interfaces. In thinner snowpack areas, facets are present at the base.

Treeline snow depths range from 100-200+ cm.

Weather Summary

Over the next 48 hours, temperatures will remain seasonally average, with valley lows near -5 °C and ridgetop temperatures around -8 °C. Snowfall will continue at roughly 5 cm per day on the low end and up to 10 cm per day on the high end, with 5–10 cm overnight and another 5–10 cm possible into Wednesday morning. Southwest winds will strengthen into the strong range and remain elevated through Wednesday.

Terrain and Travel Advice

  • Watch for newly formed and reactive wind slabs as you transition into wind-affected terrain.
  • If triggered, wind slabs avalanches may step down to deeper layers resulting in larger avalanches.
  • Avoid thin areas like rocky outcrops where you're most likely to trigger avalanches on deep weak layers.

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.

Deep Persistent Slabs

Deep Persistent Slab avalanches are the release of a thick cohesive layer of hard snow (a slab), when the bond breaks between the slab and an underlying persistent weak layer deep in the snowpack. The most common persistent weak layers involved in deep, persistent slabs are depth hoar or facets surrounding a deeply buried crust. Deep Persistent Slabs are typically hard to trigger, are very destructive and dangerous due to the large mass of snow involved, and can persist for months once developed. They are often triggered from areas where the snow is shallow and weak, and are particularly difficult to forecast for and manage.