Avalanche forecast

Kananaskis

Apr 21 – 22, 2023Avalanche Canada
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Avalanche danger

Sun
Mon
Alpine
2 · Moderate
Treeline
2 · Moderate
Below
1 · Low
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Highlights

Decent skiing continues to be found on polar aspects where the sun hasn't touch it. Continue to start early and finish early as good spring habits.

Avalanche problems

  • Persistent Slabs

    • Alpine
    • Treeline
    • Below treeline
    Likelihood
    Possible
    Size
    1.5–2.5

    The persistent layer is down roughly 100cm. May wake up again with increasing precipitation. North aspects is where this layer has been most active.

  • Loose Dry

    • Alpine
    • Treeline
    • Below treeline
    Likelihood
    Likely
    Size
    1–1.5

    This will be a problem on steep alpine terrain or where this storm snow sits on top of a developed melt freeze crusts.

  • Deep Persistent Slabs

    • Alpine
    • Treeline
    • Below treeline
    Likelihood
    Possible
    Size
    2–3.5

    Shallow snowpack areas are an area of special concern, especially with intense solar radiation and/or daytime heating.

    Great evidence of this problem avalanching is easy to find along the spray road right now.

Confidence

Moderate

Avalanche Summary

No field teams today.

No avalanches reported.

Snowpack Summary

15-20 cm of recent snow overlies a variety of surfaces such as wind slabs and melt/freeze crusts. Sheltered areas and polar aspects will provide the best skiing with little wind effect. Be aware of sluffing on solar aspects if the sun comes out. Forecasters continue to track persistent weaknesses down anywhere from 40 to 100cm on polar aspects. These weaknesses are highly variable in nature and travelers should take the time to dig down and evaluate the snowpack frequently. Also, the lingering deep persistent slab problem is still alive and well.

If the sun comes out stability will deteriorate quickly so pay attention to the incoming radiation on aspects you are travelling on or under. Early starts and finishes are a great way to deal with some of these issues.

Weather Summary

Continued cloudy conditions with trace amounts of snow in the forecast for the weekend.

Winds are lighter, 20km out of the SW swapping to west on Saturday.

Day time highs of -4 and freezing levels around 2100m.

More details can be found in the Mountain Weather Forecast.

Terrain and Travel Advice

  • Avoid steep slopes when air temperatures are warm, or solar radiation is strong.
  • In areas where deep persistent slabs may exist, avoid shallow or variable depth snowpacks and unsupported terrain features.

Regions covered