Avalanche Forecast

Archived

Mar 9th, 2026–Mar 11th, 2026

Alpine

Natural avalanches possible, human triggered probable.

Treeline

Natural avalanches possible, human triggered probable.

Below Treeline

Natural avalanches unlikely, human triggered possible.

Alpine

Natural avalanches possible, human triggered probable.

Treeline

Natural avalanches possible, human triggered probable.

Below Treeline

Natural avalanches unlikely, human triggered possible.

Alpine

Natural and human triggered avalanches likely.

Treeline

Natural avalanches possible, human triggered probable.

Below Treeline

Natural avalanches unlikely, human triggered possible.

Regions

Kananaskis, Bow Valley, Highwood Pass, North 40, Spray - KLakes.

Colder temps and a mix of sun and cloud for Tuesday, conditions are prime for human triggering, exercise caution and practice conservative route finding if in avalanche terrain.

Confidence

Avalanche Summary

Several new natural slab avalanches throughout the spray valley observed up to Size 2.5.

Snowpack Summary

Saturday/Sundays storm has changed the snowpack a fair bit. Wet snow/rain was dominant on Saturday and Sunday. Things slowly cooled off by mid day Sunday and turned to snow. Forecasters out in the black prince zone today found minimal new snow at valley bottom and up to 40cm at 2350m. There is a melt freeze crust up to this elevation and a suncrust above on solar aspects. Below this sits the Feb 14th crust approx down 80cm.

Weather Summary

Tuesday weather:

A mix of sun and cloud. Day time high of -15 with 30 km/h West winds

More details can be found in the Mountain Weather Forecast.

Terrain and Travel Advice

Expect slab conditions to change drastically as you move into wind-exposed terrain.
Avoid steep terrain, including convex rolls, or areas with a thin, rocky, or variable snowpack.

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.

Loose Dry

Loose Dry avalanches are the release of dry unconsolidated snow and typically occur within layers of soft snow near the surface of the snowpack. These avalanches start at a point and entrain snow as they move downhill, forming a fan-shaped avalanche. Other names for loose-dry avalanches include point-release avalanches or sluffs.