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Avalanche Forecast

Archived

Dec 16th, 2019–Dec 19th, 2019

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

Waterton Lakes.

Winds have been whipping in Waterton, be cautious of thin rocky areas where it may be possible to trigger deeper layers.

Weather Forecast

Tuesday: Cloudy with sunny periods and no new snow. Strong SW winds and a high of -7.

Wednesday: Sun and cloud, moderate SW winds and a high of -5.

Thursday: Flurries depositing 5-10cm of new snow. Moderate SW winds and a high of -6

Snowpack Summary

A true rockies snowpack! Windslabs exist at all elevations, especially in burnt areas. A problematic weak crust facet combo formed in November is down 60cm, and additional crust/facet layers formed in October form the bottom of the snowpack.

Avalanche Summary

Scattered small naturally triggered windslabs have been spotted in lee areas at treeline and below in the past few days.

Confidence

Timing of incoming weather systems is uncertain on Friday

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.

Persistent Slabs

Persistent Slab avalanches are the release of a cohesive layer of snow (a slab) in the middle to upper snowpack, when the bond to an underlying persistent weak layer breaks. Persistent layers include: surface hoar, depth hoar, near-surface facets, or faceted snow. Persistent weak layers can continue to produce avalanches for days, weeks or even months, making them especially dangerous and tricky. As additional snow and wind events build a thicker slab on top of the persistent weak layer, this avalanche problem may develop into a Deep Persistent Slab.