Avalanche Forecast
Issued: Feb 22nd, 2015 8:09AM
The alpine rating is , the treeline rating is , and the below treeline rating is Known problems include Persistent Slabs.
ghelgeson,
Avalanche Canada
Potentially warm temperatures at upper elevations Monday afternoon could bump up danger ratings, keep an eye on the thermometer.
Summary
Confidence
Fair - Freezing levels are uncertain on Monday
Weather Forecast
Monday: Clear skies, light to moderate NW winds, no precipitation, freezing level rising to 1500m with potential for above freezing temperatures at upper elevations in the late afternoon. Tuesday: Increasing cloud cover, light SW winds at valley bottom, moderate NW winds at ridgetop. No precipitation, freezing level rising to 1500m. Wednesday: Increasing cloud cover, light NW winds, no precipitation, freezing level rising to 1500m.
Avalanche Summary
No new avalanche activity to report.
Snowpack Summary
Up to 5cm of snow covers a widespread layer of surface hoar above a crust that extends all the way to ridge crest. The curst is effectively "capping" the snowpack and doing a good job of protecting the buried weak layers bellow. However, I suspect that the mid-January surface hoar layer could still produce an avalanche if given a large enough trigger in the right spot. It can be found down about 1m in the alpine and 50-60cm at treeline. The mid-December crust/facet/surface hoar weakness may persist in the mid to lower snowpack at higher elevations.
Problems
Persistent Slabs
Although they are unlikely, destructive avalanches could be possible given a large enough trigger in an area where the surface crust is breakable. Warming temperatures Monday afternoon may increase the likelihood of human triggering too.
Be aware of thin areas that may propogate to deeper instabilites.>Watch for clues, like sluffing off of cliffs, that the snowpack is warming up. >
Aspects: All aspects.
Elevations: Alpine.
Likelihood
Expected Size
Valid until: Feb 23rd, 2015 2:00PM
