Dashboard Regions Weather Stations Radar Alerts Glossary
Contact About
Log In

Register for an account and never miss a forecast again!

Register

Avalanche Forecast

Archived

Apr 10th, 2023–Apr 11th, 2023

Alpine
Natural and human triggered avalanches likely.
Treeline
Natural avalanches possible, human triggered probable.
Below Treeline
Natural avalanches possible, human triggered probable.
Alpine
Natural avalanches possible, human triggered probable.
Treeline
Natural avalanches unlikely, human triggered possible.
Below Treeline
Natural avalanches unlikely, human triggered possible.
Alpine
Natural avalanches unlikely, human triggered possible.
Treeline
Natural avalanches unlikely, human triggered possible.
Below Treeline
Natural avalanches unlikely, human triggered possible.

Regions

South Rockies, St. Mary, Bull, Elkford East, Elkford West.

Observe your local conditions, and let that guide your terrain choice. Forecasted snow and rainfall amounts are uncertain.

As the freezing level falls, you will find that conditions change drastically with elevation and through the day.

Confidence

Low

Avalanche Summary

No recent avalanches have been reported. It is likely that a widespread avalanche cycle occurred during the warm and wet storm. Natural and human triggered avalanches will remain likely on Tuesday.

If you head out in the backcountry, let us know what you are seeing by submitting a report to the Mountain Information Network.

Snowpack Summary

20-30 cm of recent snow in the alpine covers settling, dry snow on shaded (northerly) aspects, and a frozen crust on solar aspects. At treeline, this recent snow is likely to be denser, shallower, and moist or refrozen.

Below treeline, rain soaked surfaces are starting to freeze or get snowed on as temperatures drop, and a lot more dirt is showing at low elevations.

The mid snowpack is generally settled and strong, except in areas with snow depths less than 150 cm. In these lower snow areas, the mid-pack is likely weaker and more faceted.

The lower snowpack includes a layer of large, weak facets and/or depth hoar crystals.

Weather Summary

Snow/Rain amounts for the ongoing storm are uncertain. Weather models are not agreeing on how widespread or intense the precipitation will be, and exact freezing levels will be hard to forecast as they drop. Prepare to continually evaluate the conditions, and change plans as necessary.

Monday Night

Cloudy. Moderate to heavy rain/snow expected. Snow/rain line somewhere between 1500 and 2000 m. 10-20 cm of snow, 20-30 mm of rain. Possible isolated areas of 50mm or more. Treeline temperature around 0°C. Light to moderate southwest ridgetop wind, trending to strong at higher elevations.

Tuesday

Cloudy. 5-10 cm of snow expected. The snow/rain line drops to 1000 m. Light southwest ridgetop wind trending to strong at higher elevations.

Wednesday

Mostly cloudy. 2-5 cm of snow expected. Treeline temperature around -5°C. Light variable ridgetop wind.

Thursday

Partly cloudy. 2-5 cm of snow expected. Treeline temperature around -3°C. Light variable ridgetop wind.

More details can be found in the Mountain Weather Forecast.

Terrain and Travel Advice

  • Continue to make conservative terrain choices while the storm snow settles and stabilizes.
  • Be alert to conditions that change with aspect and elevation.
  • Be alert to conditions that change throughout the day.
  • Watch for unstable snow on specific terrain features, especially when the snow is moist or wet.
  • Avoid thin areas like rock outcroppings where you're most likely to trigger avalanches failing on deep weak layers.

Problems

Storm Slabs

Storm Slab avalanches are the release of a cohesive layer (a slab) of new snow that breaks within new snow or on the old snow surface. Storm-slabs typically last between a few hours and few days (following snowfall). Storm-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 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.