Avalanche forecast

Waterton Lakes

Feb 12 – 15, 2013Parks Canada
View on map
Archived · expired 14 years ago

Avalanche danger

Tue
Wed
Alpine
2 · Moderate
Treeline
2 · Moderate
Below
1 · Low
Open full map

Highlights

Strong winds are building new windslab from Feb 9s 20cm. Although the natural avalanche activity has declined, it could still be possible to trigger windslabs in the lee of ridgecrests. Suncrest on S aspects but great skiing in sheltered areas.

Avalanche problems

  • Wind Slabs

    • Alpine
    • Treeline
    • Below treeline
    Likelihood
    Unlikely - Possible
    Size
    1–2
    New wind slabs have formed in the last 48hrs. They were touchy yesterday with a couple of avalanches triggered by skiers immediately below the ridgecrests on N and E asp. Be cautious of lee slopes in steep terrain.

  • Cornices

    • Alpine
    • Treeline
    • Below treeline
    Likelihood
    Possible
    Size
    1–2
    South facing slopes are starting to heat up with daytime warming. We may start to see more cornice failures which could trigger recent or buried wind slabs. Avoid traveling in terrain exposed to cornice failures.

Weather Forecast

Only light precip over higher elevations forecast for the next couple of days. Winds will continue to be strong although the northwesterly flow aloft means that ridgecrests in the Cameron lake area may be somewhat sheltered. Continued solar radiation will mean sun effect on south aspects.

Snowpack Summary

The 10-20cm of snow we received on Feb 9 is sitting on surface hoar, suncrust and old windslabs. Solar radiation resulted in moist snow on direct S asp today. Strong NW winds are building windslabs on E asp in the immediate lee of ridgecrests. Surface hoar was found on all aspects today which will be something to look out for down the road.

Avalanche Summary

The avalanche activity has subsided from the loose snow avalanches we observed in the last 48 hours. A couple of size 1 loose snow avalanches that occurred in the last 24 hours were observed in the Cameron lake area today on a north aspect at treeline.

Confidence

Regions covered