Dashboard Regions Weather Stations Radar Alerts Glossary
Contact About
Log In

Register for an account and never miss a forecast again!

Register

Avalanche Forecast

Archived

Mar 4th, 2024–Mar 5th, 2024

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

Regions

Purcells, Dogtooth, East Purcell.

⚠️Dangerous avalanche conditions⚠️

Stick to low-angle terrain and be mindful of overhead hazard. Human-triggered and remote-triggered avalanches remain likely.

Confidence

High

Avalanche Summary

Natural, skier, and explosive-triggered avalanches up to size 3 continue to be reported daily throughout the region since early last week. Many of the reported avalanches have been remote-triggered.

This MIN report details a remotely triggered avalanche near the Gorman Lake area that is characteristic of numerous reports throughout the province recently.

While natural activity has tapered off, human triggering remains a serious problem.

Snowpack Summary

Roughly 100 to 120 cm of recent snow rests atop a widespread crust formed in early February. Weak surface hoar and faceted crystals have been found just above or directly atop the crust. This layer continues to produce many concerning avalanches across the province.

The mid and lower snowpack is faceted with depth hoar and is generally weak and untrustworthy.

Weather Summary

Monday Night

Partly cloudy with 0 to 2 cm of snow. 10 to 30 km/h west ridgetop wind. Treeline temperature -15 °C.

Tuesday

Mix of sun and cloud. 10 to 30 km/h west ridgetop wind. Treeline temperature -15 °C.

Wednesday

Sunny. 0 to 20 km/h west ridgetop wind. Treeline temperature -12 °C.

Thursday

Sunny. 0 to 20 km/h west ridgetop wind. Treeline temperature -10 °C.

More details can be found in the Mountain Weather Forecast.

Terrain and Travel Advice

  • Conservative terrain selection is critical, choose only well supported, low consequence lines.
  • Keep in mind that human triggering potential persists as natural avalanching tapers off.
  • Remote triggering is a concern, watch out for adjacent and overhead slopes.
  • Be aware of the potential for large, destructive avalanches due to the presence of deeply buried weak layers.

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.

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.