Kananaskis

While the skiing is basically non-existent, the ice climbing, winter hiking and ice skating are all in great shape. Hikers, snowshoers and climbers should still keep an eye out for avalanche exposure. Avoid steep, confined snow gullies or snow slopes above cliffs.

No new observed or reported.

Terms like, "storm snow", HST, HN24, HN48, or even HN144 won't be in this snowpack description. We haven't seen a flake in ages! Thanks to this extended weather pattern, our excuse of a snowpack has dried out and become a combination of old, weak windslabs and loose, sugary facets. The alpine is home to isolated windslabs that are probably getting touchier as they break down. Generally windslabs will become less reactive as they break down, but given how these current slabs are precariously perched on a house of cards (facets being the correct term), expect them to get touchier. If that wasn't enough, expect them to entrain a fair amount of snow as they travel. In other snow pack news, the surface hoar that's been steadily growing will become very relevant once it does snow. It appears the feathery surface hoar is widespread and stretching up to at least treeline.

The clear, cold and dry weather we've enjoyed for the past while is slowly moving on. We'll experience some light SW winds, cloudy skies and seasonal temperatures (ranging from -14 to -8) for a couple more days. By Sunday we might get a pulse of weather that will bring some snow. Fingers crossed. At this point, we'll take whatever leftovers the interior ranges will give us.

More details can be found in the Mountain Weather Forecast.

• Be carefull with sluffing in steep terrain, especially above cliffs and terrain traps.
• Avoid terrain traps where the consequence of any avalanche could be serious.