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Avalanche Forecast

Archived

Apr 2nd, 2026–Apr 3rd, 2026

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.
Below Treeline
Natural avalanches unlikely.

Regions

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

Skiing conditions have been excellent on sheltered northerly aspects.

Cornices are big and will fall down at some point. This could be enough to trigger a larger avalanche.

Confidence

Moderate

  • We are uncertain about how quickly persistent slabs are gaining strength.

Avalanche Summary

Sunshine ski hill reported some small low density windslabs with the new snow in alpine and isolated treeline terrain. These were predictable and inconsequential.

Otherwise no new avalanches observed or reported.

Snowpack Summary

A few cms of new snow sits on variable wind effected snow in alpine and treeline features. On solar aspects, a surface crust has formed, which is more pronounced at lower elevations. On polar aspects, 20–50 cm of snow overlies the March 20th rain crust, which exists below 2100–2300 m. Cornices are large and we are seeing regular failures.

The Jan 24th facet layer is buried 70–180 cm deep at treeline and in the alpine, with some tests still producing hard, sudden results

Weather Summary

An upper ridge brings mainly benign weather for the next few days:

Friday: Mostly cloudy. 1 to 2 cm of snow. 30 km/h west ridgetop wind. Treeline temperature -4 °C.

Saturday: Mostly cloudy. 1 to 4 cm of snow. 40 km/h west ridgetop wind. Treeline temperature -4 °C.

Sunday: Mostly cloudy. 1 to 3 cm of snow. 30 km/h west ridgetop wind. Treeline temperature -4 °C.

Terrain and Travel Advice

  • Cornice failures could trigger large and destructive avalanches.

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.

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.