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Avalanche Forecast

Archived

Feb 3rd, 2019–Feb 4th, 2019

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

Kananaskis.

Good skiing can be found at all elevations.  New snow still needs time to settle and bond. 

Confidence

Moderate - Due to the number of field observations

Weather Forecast

Cold!!!!! Overnight low for Sunday night is forecast for -33c with a high of -21c for Monday. Skies for Monday are forecast to be a mix of sun and cloud with light winds from the South. No snow in the horizon.

Avalanche Summary

Limited observations. Several loose dry up to size 2 were observed in the alpine on East aspects.

Snowpack Summary

Up to 45cm of snow fell over the week end and is bonding well with the interface; give it a little more time for it to bond even better. We had limited observations today but suspect some wind slab in the alpine from Saturday's winds and yet there were also some loose dry avalanches observed on easterly alpine bowls. The buried sun crust on solar aspects down around 60cm is still a concern with this new load as well as the isolated January 17 SH also down around 60cm around tree line. The basal facets are down 80-100cm down and should still be on everyone's radar as any avalanche triggered in the upper snow pack has the potential to trigger this lower weakness.

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.

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.