Avalanche Forecast
Issued: Dec 20th, 2022 4:00PM
The alpine rating is , the treeline rating is , and the below treeline rating is Known problems include Deep Persistent Slabs.
AB,
Avalanche Canada
The snowpack is shallow, weak and faceted. Human triggering remains possible. Extreme cold temperatures will exacerbate the consequences of being caught in an avalanche, an injury, or a gear malfunction.
Summary
Confidence
Moderate
Avalanche Summary
No avalanches were observed or reported on Tuesday.
Snowpack Summary
The snowpack is shallow and weak with a base of facets and depth hoar. A 20-60 cm slab overlies this weak base and could easily be triggered in some locations. Loose, faceted sluffs are being triggered below treeline in some locations and any avalanches that do release will run further than expected with the cohesion-less snow.
Weather Summary
Bitter cold with lows close to -40 on Wednesday. Thankfully the wind will remain light and variable. A warming trend with some snow is expected over the weekend.
Terrain and Travel Advice
- Uncertainty is best managed through conservative terrain choices at this time.
Problems
Deep Persistent Slabs
A 20-60 cm slab overlies weak basal facets which continue to get weaker each day. No recent natural avalanches have been observed, but we expect human triggering to remain possible on large slopes. This problem will be around for the foreseeable future.
Aspects: All aspects.
Elevations: Alpine, Treeline.
Likelihood
Expected Size
Valid until: Dec 21st, 2022 4:00PM
