Avalanche forecast

Kananaskis

Mar 31, 2015 – Mar 31, 2016Alberta Parks
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Archived · expired 11 years ago

Avalanche danger

Thu
Fri
Alpine
2 · Moderate
Treeline
1 · Low
Below
1 · Low
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Highlights

Cooler temperatures should "lock up" the snowpack at lower elevations. Conditions are still more winter-like at high elevations.

Avalanche problems

  • Wind Slabs

    • Alpine
    • Treeline
    • Below treeline
    Likelihood
    Possible
    Size
    1–4
    Pockets of wind slab are found in alpine areas in lee and cross-loaded features. New wind slabs that sit on previously formed crust layers could be more easily triggered.

  • Loose Wet

    • Alpine
    • Treeline
    • Below treeline
    Likelihood
    Unlikely - Possible
    Size
    1–3
    Cooler temps and cloudy skies on Wednesday should lead to a dramatic reduction in loose wet avalanches when compared to recent days. However, when the sun shines it is intense, so be aware of rapid changes especially on solar aspects.

  • Deep Persistent Slabs

    • Alpine
    • Treeline
    • Below treeline
    Likelihood
    Unlikely - Possible
    Size
    2–5
    Triggering of the weak basal layers is still a possibility, especially in steep and shallow snowpack features.

Confidence

Good

Weather Forecast

Wednesday will be cloudy with scattered flurries and possible snowfall accumulations of 5cm. The temperature should reach a high of -6 °C in the alpine. Winds will be out of the northwest at 30 km/h gusting to 70 km/h at ridgetop. Freezing level is expected to be1500 metres.

Avalanche Summary

Two slab avalanches have occurred in the past 48hrs on steep SE aspects in the alpine. These were both size 2.0 and likely triggered by warming and/or solar radiation. In addition, several loose wet avalanches up to size 1.5 were noted on all aspects at treeline and  below.

Snowpack Summary

A very light freeze occurred overnight at valley bottom, but treeline elevations remained above freezing through the night. Conditions are isothermal for much of the snowpack below 2300m. Crusts are also found at higher elevations on solar aspects, and these are breaking down during sunny periods and on very warm days. Isolated pockets of wind slab are found in alpine areas, particularly in lee and cross-loaded gully features. At upper elevations the basal weaknesses have been unaffected by the recent warm conditions and can still be triggered in steep and shallow snowpack regions.

Regions covered