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Avalanche Forecast

Archived

Dec 19th, 2022–Dec 20th, 2022

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

Regions

Akamina, Crowsnest North, Crowsnest South.

Wind slabs may be present on all alpine and treeline aspects thanks to variable winds.

Cold temperatures and shorter days should play a role in your trip planning.

Confidence

Moderate

Avalanche Summary

New wind slabs have been reported to be reactive to ski cuts.

Last week there was activity on buried weak layers produced several, up to size 2, avalanches in neighbouring forecast regions. This should be considered to also be in our region even though it has been quiet here for some time.

If you are heading into the backcountry please consider filling out a Mountain Information Network report.

Snowpack Summary

Fresh wind slabs have formed in the alpine and treeline by recent snow and variable winds. In sheltered areas, up to 25 cm of low-density surface snow may be found. Both sit on a wide variety of surfaces. On solar aspects, they are likely to overlay a sun crust and on northerly aspects, they overlay a layer of facets. In sheltered areas around treeline, surface hoar can also be found below our top layer

A weak layer consisting of facets and a crust formed in November is now buried around 50 cm deep. This layer has produced large avalanches in the past week and continues to show reactivity in snowpack tests in the neighboring forecast region.

In general, the snowpack is quite faceted with average snowpack depths of around 100 cm at treeline.

Weather Summary

Monday Night

A mix of cloudy and clear, trace accumulation, 10 to 13 km/h north wind, -27 C at 1500 m.

Tuesday

Mostly cloudy, up to 5 cm accumulation, 10 to 20 km/h northwest winds, -26 C at 1500 m..

Wednesday

Mostly sunny, trace accumulation, 25 km/h northeast wind, temperature -30 C at 1500 m.

Thursday

Sunny, no accumulation, 15 km/h northeast winds, -27 C at 1500 m.

More details can be found in the Mountain Weather Forecast.

Terrain and Travel Advice

  • Recent wind has varied in direction so watch for wind slabs on all aspects.
  • Avoid steep, rocky, and wind effected areas where triggering slabs is more likely.
  • Wind slabs may be poorly bonded to the underlying crust.

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.