Avalanche Forecast

Archived

Mar 7th, 2026–Mar 8th, 2026

Alpine

Natural avalanches possible, human triggered probable.

Treeline

Natural avalanches unlikely, human triggered possible.

Below Treeline

Natural avalanches unlikely, human triggered possible.

Alpine

Natural avalanches possible, human triggered probable.

Treeline

Natural avalanches unlikely, human triggered possible.

Below Treeline

Natural avalanches unlikely.

Alpine

Natural avalanches unlikely, human triggered possible.

Treeline

Natural avalanches unlikely, human triggered possible.

Below Treeline

Natural avalanches unlikely.

Regions

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

There may be rolling closures for avalanche control on the Icefields Parkway in the Parkers area on Sunday, March 8th. Check for updates on https://511.alberta.ca/

Watch out for wind slabs and avoid triggering the persistent weak layer on steep, open faces, particularly where the snowpack is shallow.

Confidence

Moderate

We are confident that there are persistent slabs in the snowpack, but uncertain about how likely they are to trigger.
We are uncertain about forecast precipitation amounts.

Avalanche Summary

Several large avalanches failing on the January 24 persistent weak layer have been reported in the past week:

On March 2nd, several size 2.5 persistent slab avalanches were observed.

On March 5th, a size 3.5 persistent slab avalanche was observed.

Snowpack Summary

Strong SW winds have redistributed snow over a variety of surfaces and formed wind slabs. A persistent weak layer of surface hoar and facets from January 24th is down 20-80 cm. Below, the snowpack is generally well consolidated facets to ground. Icefields snow depths range from 130-200 cm and snow depth in the Maligne area ranges from 60-140 cm.

Weather Summary

Sunday

Cloudy with sunny periods and isolated flurries.

Precipitation: Trace.

Alpine temperature: High -7 °C.

Ridge wind west: 20 km/h gusting to 95 km/h.

Freezing level at valley bottom.

Monday

A mix of sun and cloud with isolated flurries.

Precipitation: Trace.

Alpine temperature: Low -17 °C, High -14 °C.

Ridge wind west: 15 km/h gusting to 40 km/h.

Freezing level at valley bottom.

Tuesday

Cloudy with sunny periods and isolated flurries.

Precipitation: Trace.

Alpine temperature: Low -17 °C, High -13 °C.

Ridge wind southwest: 15 km/h gusting to 45 km/h.

Freezing level at valley bottom.

Terrain and Travel Advice

Look for signs of instability: whumphing, hollow sounds, shooting cracks, and recent avalanches.
Fresh snow rests on a problematic persistent slab, don't let good riding lure you into complacency.

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.