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.
Alpine
Natural avalanches unlikely, human triggered possible.
Treeline
Natural avalanches unlikely.
Below Treeline
Natural avalanches unlikely.
Regions
Jasper.
First spring-like hit of sun on Thursday. Solar initiated dry and moist loose slides probable on solar aspects (SE through W; eg. Weeping Wall). Keep aware for localized signs of increasing hazard! Time to consider an earlier start to your day?
Weather Forecast
Friday, expect cloudy with sunny periods and isolated flurries. Ppt Trace. Alp High -12 C. Light N gusting to 35 Saturday. Cloudy with sunny periods and isolated flurries. Alp Low -24 C, High -15 C. Ridge wind east: 10 km/h.FzL VB.Mountain weather forecast available at Avalanche Canada.
Snowpack Summary
The upper snowpack is faceted creating a weak slab over a faint, inconsistent layer of surface hoar/facets on a crust down 40cm. The thicker snowpack spots have a strong mid-pack bridging the deep persistent basal weakness of depth hoar. Thinner snow-pack zones are much less consolidated and can act as a slab triggering the basal depth hoar.
Avalanche Summary
Field team reporting dry loose from steep Alpine terrain and thin (5cm), but present soft wind effect at immediate ridge top; reactive to skis but not alarming or hazardous. 2600m near Cataract Pass in the Columbia Icefields region. No other reports of new avalanche activity.
Confidence
Problems
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.
Deep Persistent Slabs
Deep Persistent Slab avalanches are the release of a thick cohesive layer of hard snow (a slab), when the bond breaks between the slab and an underlying persistent weak layer deep in the snowpack. The most common persistent weak layers involved in deep, persistent slabs are depth hoar or facets surrounding a deeply buried crust. Deep Persistent Slabs are typically hard to trigger, are very destructive and dangerous due to the large mass of snow involved, and can persist for months once developed. They are often triggered from areas where the snow is shallow and weak, and are particularly difficult to forecast for and manage.