Avalanche Forecast

Archived

Apr 4th, 2026–Apr 5th, 2026

Alpine

Natural avalanches unlikely, human triggered possible.

Treeline

Natural avalanches unlikely.

Below Treeline

Natural avalanches unlikely, human triggered possible.

Alpine

Natural avalanches unlikely, human triggered possible.

Treeline

Natural avalanches unlikely, human triggered possible.

Below Treeline

Natural avalanches unlikely, human triggered possible.

Alpine

Natural avalanches unlikely, human triggered possible.

Treeline

Natural avalanches unlikely, human triggered possible.

Below Treeline

Natural avalanches unlikely, human triggered possible.

Regions

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

Warming trend expected over the next few days. Be mindful of overhead hazards such as rockfall and cornice fall, which are large enough to trigger persistent weak layers deeper in the snowpack.

As freezing levels rise, shaded slopes above treeline may still offer excellent skiing conditions.

Confidence

High

We are confident due to a stable weather pattern.

Avalanche Summary

Mt. Nigel had two separate size 2.5 avalanches that released on the persistent weak layer on April 2nd. Both were on a southwest aspect and likely caused by warm temps and solar radiation.

Snowpack Summary

Dry snow can still be found in shady aspects. 20-40 cm below, a firm rain crust from late March is supportive at low elevations but gradually disappears above tree line, around 2300 m. A deeper persistent weak layer from late January exists in the alpine down 80–120 cm. The lower snowpack is generally strong although weak basal facets can still be found in shallow areas.

Weather Summary

Sunday
A mix of sun and cloud. Precipitation: Nil. Alpine temperature: High 0 °C. Ridge wind light to 15 km/h. Freezing level: 2200 metres.

Monday

Cloudy with sunny periods and isolated flurries. Precipitation: Trace.

Alpine temperature: Low -3 °C, High 2 °C. Ridge wind southwest: 15 km/h gusting to 70 km/h. Freezing level: 2500 metres.

Tuesday

Flurries. Accumulation: 8 cm. Alpine temperature: Low -11 °C, High 2 °C. Ridge wind west: 20 km/h gusting to 85 km/h. Freezing level: 2300 metres.

Terrain and Travel Advice

Keep in mind that human triggering may persist as natural avalanches taper off.
Cornice failures could trigger large and destructive avalanches.

Problems

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.

Loose Wet

Loose Wet avalanches are the release of wet unconsolidated snow or slush. These avalanches typically occur within layers of wet snow near the surface of the snowpack, but they may quickly gouge into lower snowpack layers. Like Loose Dry Avalanches, they start at a point and entrain snow as they move downhill, forming a fan-shaped avalanche. Other names for loose-wet avalanches include point-release avalanches or sluffs. Loose Wet avalanches can trigger slab avalanches that break into deeper snow layers.