Avalanche Forecast

Archived

Dec 15th, 2025–Dec 16th, 2025

Alpine

Natural and human triggered avalanches likely.

Treeline

Natural and human triggered avalanches likely.

Below Treeline

Natural and human triggered avalanches likely.

Alpine

Natural and human triggered avalanches likely.

Treeline

Natural and human triggered avalanches likely.

Below Treeline

Natural avalanches possible, human triggered probable.

Alpine

Natural avalanches possible, human triggered probable.

Treeline

Natural avalanches possible, human triggered probable.

Below Treeline

Natural avalanches possible, human triggered probable.

Regions

Jasper, Brazeau, Churchill, Cirrus-Wilson, Fryatt, Icefields, Maligne, Marmot, Miette Lake, Pyramid.

Stormy weather will bring upwards of 50-70cm of snow, strong winds, and lower elevation rain. Bulk of the precipitation will arrive Monday to early Tuesday. Highway 93 is closed currently until avalanche control occurs on Tuesday. Check 511 for updates.

Confidence

High

Avalanche Summary

Monday Maligne patrol observed a few small low elevation loose wet avalanches. It was raining. Sunday's Icefield patrol noted similar activity and Alpine locations were obscured. Icefield's road is closed for the incoming storm thus no patrol Monday.

Snowpack Summary

Saturday to Monday morning brought 20cm of new snow plus steady moderate gusting extreme winds loading lee features. This overlies a previous 50 cm of storm snow from Dec 8th which rests on a facet interface. A small crust is located 30cm up from ground.

Weather Summary

Monday to Tuesday will be intense snowfall, 50cm of snow, moderate gusting extreme winds, and -1 to -8 °C. Wednesday to Thursday may bring an additional 25cm of snow. Friday's temperatures will plummet to -21 °C.

Terrain and Travel Advice

Continue to make conservative terrain choices while the storm snow settles and stabilizes.
Loose avalanches may step down to deeper layers, resulting in larger avalanches.

Problems

Storm Slabs

Storm Slab avalanches are the release of a cohesive layer (a slab) of new snow that breaks within new snow or on the old snow surface. Storm-slabs typically last between a few hours and few days (following snowfall). Storm-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.

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.

Loose Dry

Loose Dry avalanches are the release of dry unconsolidated snow and typically occur within layers of soft snow near the surface of the snowpack. These avalanches start at a point and entrain snow as they move downhill, forming a fan-shaped avalanche. Other names for loose-dry avalanches include point-release avalanches or sluffs.