Avalanche Forecast
Regions: Kananaskis.
Like an unwanted party guest, this ongoing wind is just plain annoying. It doesn't seem to want to leave, instead it just keeps raging into the wee hours of the morning.
Confidence
Moderate -
Weather Forecast
Should I talk about wind now or later? Lets get it over with. Strong westerly winds again tomorrow with valley bottom gusts into the moderate range. There I said it. Moving on. We will hopefully get a few flurries that will leave behind 5cm or so by late in the day. Temperatures will be a pleasant -5 or so.
Avalanche Summary
Nothing new today, but there was some impressive wind transport and spindrift in the southern part of the region today.Â
Snowpack Summary
The winds have done an impressive job of redistributing what little surface snow we have left. Windslabs are basically in any open terrain at any elevation. Needless to say they don't become a problem until treeline, but once the denser slabs are encountered they do pose an avalanche threat. They seem most problematic in immediate lee areas and crossloaded features. That's not to say open areas are smooth sailing. They also deserve some assessment and judgement. As for the deeper layers, so far so good. They are cooperating and don't appear to be a major issue yet.
Terrain and Travel
- Be careful with wind slabs, especially in steep, unsupported and/or convex terrain features.
- Approach lee and cross-loaded slopes with caution.
Avalanche Problems
Wind Slabs
Windslabs of all types and densities can be found out there. Winds today were random in every way. Speed and direction seemed to change at a moment's notice.
Aspects: All aspects.
Elevations: Alpine, Treeline.
Likelihood: Possible - Likely
Expected Size: 1 - 2.5