Avalanche Forecast

Archived

Feb 1st, 2024–Feb 2nd, 2024

Alpine

Natural avalanches possible, human triggered probable.

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 possible, human triggered probable.

Below Treeline

Natural avalanches possible, human triggered probable.

Alpine

Natural and human triggered avalanches likely.

Treeline

Natural and human triggered avalanches likely.

Below Treeline

Natural avalanches possible, human triggered probable.

Regions

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

Warm temps are keeping the snowpack wet and isothermal. No re-freeze on the Spray lakes road for the past 3 days. There is a storm forecast to move into the region on Saturday afternoon that may give us up to 25cm of snow by Monday am.

Confidence

High

Avalanche Summary

No new avalanche were observed,

Snowpack Summary

Warm temps are making the snowpack isothermal in lower elevation areas and making the top 10-30cm moist at treeline and above. Light overnight freezes are helping, but they just can't compete with the daytime highs. Every day the snowpack is becoming weaker and weaker. This warmth induced rapid settlement is overloading the weak basal facets, and in some areas triggering full depth avalanches. Travel in avalanche terrain is not recommended at this time.

Weather Summary

Another warm day on Friday although there will be some slight cooling and maybe even go below zero for the first time in a long time! As we transition into Saturday the temperatures will begin to get a bit more seasonal, and the weather pattern will change to out of the NE and over the weekend, there may be up to 25cm of snow falling with light to moderate northerly winds.

More details can be found in the Mountain Weather Forecast.

Terrain and Travel Advice

Back off if you encounter whumpfing, hollow sounds, or shooting cracks.
In areas where deep persistent slabs may exist, avoid shallow or variable depth snowpacks and unsupported terrain features.
Watch for unstable snow on specific terrain features, especially when the snow is moist or wet.

Problems

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.

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.