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Avalanche Forecast

Archived

Nov 7th, 2019–Nov 8th, 2019

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

Regions

Banff Yoho Kootenay.

After a cold, sunny break in the weather Wednesday, the winds picked up again Thursday as temperatures warmed up. Watch for increased winds, warming, and likely some precipitation to increase avalanche hazard into the weekend.

Weather Forecast

Following moderate to strong winds and warming temperatures Thursday, further warming and increased winds are expected Friday.  Models vary greatly on the amount of snow we can expect over the next three days. Friday's warm temps may lead to rain near treeline and 2 to 10 cm , while cooling through Saturday should favor snowfall  up to 10cm.

Snowpack Summary

20-30 cm fell Nov 3 to 5th in the Bow Summit area with strong winds that produced wind affected snow in the alpine. Treeline snow depths range from 60-70 cm, and up to 110 cm in lee areas. The October crust  found close to the ground in some areas has been the failure plane in recent skier involvements.

Avalanche Summary

We Received a third-hand report of a full burial in the Observation Peak area on Sunday afternoon. A separate size 1.0 skier remote also occurred in the same area Tuesday. Explosive work Tuesday on Mt. Stephen triggered 3 thin windslabs in the alpine. One of these stepped down to a create a sz 2.5 slab almost as deep as the glacier ice.

Confidence

Intensity of incoming weather systems is uncertain on Friday

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.