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Avalanche Forecast

Archived

Apr 13th, 2014–Apr 14th, 2014

Alpine
Natural avalanches unlikely, human triggered possible.
Treeline
Natural avalanches unlikely.
Below Treeline
Natural avalanches unlikely.
Alpine
Natural avalanches unlikely, human triggered possible.
Treeline
Natural avalanches unlikely.
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

Kananaskis.

Pay lots of attention to the intensity of the solar radiation at this time of year.  Avoid solar aspects later in the day. 

Confidence

Fair - Timing or intensity of solar radiation is uncertain

Weather Forecast

Another clear day is forecast for Monday before a storm hits us once again on Tuesday.  Freezing levels are forecast to be around 1900m but the sun will definetly have an impact on stability later in the day.  Pay close attention to overhead terrain.

Avalanche Summary

A few loose wet slides up to sz 1 were observed as well as a few new sz 2 slab avalanches from thin rocky terrain on solar aspects at treeline and above.

Snowpack Summary

Dry powder snow can still be found on north aspects but below 2200m, expect to be skiing on top of a supportive crust.  On all other aspects, expect to encounter a surface crust right up to the peaks.  Some lower angle slopes that arent pure north look to be giving good skiing also eg, Sparrowhawk.  The basal facets are still a concern as is demonstrated here in this video

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.

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.