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Avalanche Forecast

Archived

Dec 21st, 2017–Dec 22nd, 2017

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

Regions

Glacier.

A reactive persistent weak layer of surface hoar down 40cm resides below surface layers.  Take time to evaluate the snowpack as you transition into avalanche terrain.

Weather Forecast

Mainly cloudy today with flurries and light SW wind. Alpine temperatures should reach -11C. Sunny with cloudy periods through the weekend with daytime highs in the -15 to -17C range and light northerly winds.

Snowpack Summary

40cm of storm snow sits on top of the Dec 15 surface hoar/persistent weak layer. On steeper solar aspects this layer is a crust and/or a crust with small surface hoar on top. The crust runs well up into the alpine on steep south aspects. Deeper in the pack there are a series of crust layers that are currently well bonded to neighboring layers.

Avalanche Summary

6 natural avalanches to size 2.5 off the north face of Mt MacDonald before control yesterday. Avalanche control east of Rogers Pass summit produced avalanches up to size 3 with most slides in the size 2 range. These slides were confined to the recent dry storm snow running far and fast. Slides lost momentum where they ran into old avalanche debris.

Confidence

Due to the number and quality of field observations

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.

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.