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Avalanche Forecast

Archived

Apr 2nd, 2021–Apr 3rd, 2021

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

Regions

Glacier.

Watch for fresh pockets of windslab in lee terrain.

Scale back your exposure on solar slopes if the surface crust breaks down/becomes moist in the afternoon.

Weather Forecast

A weak trough this afternoon gives increasing cloud.  A cold front late Saturday gives snow and increased wind.

Today: Isolated flurries. Alpine High -4 C. Light-mod SW ridge wind. Freezing level (Fzl) 1700m.

Tonight: Clear periods. Low -7.

Sat: Snow (12 cm). High -3.  Strong SW wind. Fzl 1800m.

Sun: Mainly cloudy.  Low -9, High -6. Fzl 1400m.

Snowpack Summary

A fresh breakable crust on solar aspects may break down if the sun comes out this afternoon. Recent winds have built pockets of slab in alpine and treeline lees. The March 18th layer (a crust on Solar aspets and isolated surface hoar on sheltered Northerly aspects) is now buried 60-100cm depending on aspect and elevation. Cornices are huge.

Avalanche Summary

No new avalanches on Thursday in the highway corridor. 

There was a report of a natural size 3 avalanche from a south aspect in the Purcells on Thursday, this likely failed on the March 18th crust.

A group of skiers accidentally triggered a size 3 in the Teddy Bear Trees on Tuesday, this slab avalanche failed on the March 18th melt-freeze crust.

Confidence

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.