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Avalanche Forecast

Archived

Mar 13th, 2024–Mar 14th, 2024

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 and human triggered avalanches likely.
Below Treeline
Natural and human triggered avalanches likely.
Alpine
Natural and human triggered avalanches likely.
Treeline
Natural and human triggered avalanches likely.
Below Treeline
Natural and human triggered avalanches likely.

Regions

Banff Yoho Kootenay, Little Yoho, Banff, East Side 93N, Kootenay, Lake Louise, LLSA, Sunshine, West Side 93N, Field.

Great ski conditions on sheltered, north aspects. The sun packs a punch this time of year, climbers avoid sun-exposed gullies which will avalanche in the afternoon. Thursday might be the last good day for a few days as a major warm-up and avalanche cycle will start on Friday. Get up early and be home early.

Confidence

High

Avalanche Summary

Sunshine Village snow safety reported one size 2, cornice triggered by explosives that triggered a persistent slab below (Feb 3 interface) and ran 260 m. This is a shaded aspect in the alpine. Otherwise, no new avalanches were observed or reported today but we had limited observations.

Snowpack Summary

20 cm of recent snow is settling and becoming moist in the afternoon at valley bottoms and on sun-exposed slopes but remains cold and dry on north aspects. Morning surface crusts on solar aspects. 60-90 cm of settled snow overlies weak facets above the Feb 3 crust interface which exists up to at least 2500 m and is producing avalanches. The base of the snowpack consists of weak facets. Deeper snowpack areas (west of the divide) are more settled and stronger.

Weather Summary

Thursday looks like a great day, then prepare for a major warm-up! Starting on Thursday, a ridge of high pressure will give clear skies, light winds and rising temperatures across the region. Temps should remain cool in the shade on Thursday and the real warm-up begins on Friday. Freezing levels are forecasted as follows:

Thursday 1700 m; Friday 2700 m; Saturday 3200 m.

Terrain and Travel Advice

  • Be alert to conditions that change with aspect and elevation.

Problems

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.

Loose Wet

Loose Wet avalanches are the release of wet unconsolidated snow or slush. These avalanches typically occur within layers of wet snow near the surface of the snowpack, but they may quickly gouge into lower snowpack layers. Like Loose Dry Avalanches, they start at a point and entrain snow as they move downhill, forming a fan-shaped avalanche. Other names for loose-wet avalanches include point-release avalanches or sluffs. Loose Wet avalanches can trigger slab avalanches that break into deeper snow layers.

Deep Persistent Slabs

Deep Persistent Slab avalanches are the release of a thick cohesive layer of hard snow (a slab), when the bond breaks between the slab and an underlying persistent weak layer deep in the snowpack. The most common persistent weak layers involved in deep, persistent slabs are depth hoar or facets surrounding a deeply buried crust. Deep Persistent Slabs are typically hard to trigger, are very destructive and dangerous due to the large mass of snow involved, and can persist for months once developed. They are often triggered from areas where the snow is shallow and weak, and are particularly difficult to forecast for and manage.