Avalanche Forecast

Archived

Jan 29th, 2026–Jan 30th, 2026

Alpine

Natural avalanches unlikely.

Treeline

Natural avalanches unlikely.

Below Treeline

Natural avalanches unlikely.

Alpine

Natural avalanches unlikely.

Treeline

Natural avalanches unlikely.

Below Treeline

Natural avalanches unlikely.

Alpine

Natural avalanches unlikely.

Treeline

Natural avalanches unlikely.

Below Treeline

Natural avalanches unlikely.

Regions

Kananaskis, Bow Valley, Highwood Pass, North 40, Spray - KLakes.

The holding pattern continues while we wait for more snow. Ski conditions are variable, but when balanced out with the low hazard, getting out and exploring is still a good way to spend your time.

Confidence

High

We are confident due to a stable weather pattern.

Avalanche Summary

No new avalanches have been observed or reported in a few days.

Snowpack Summary

The extended surface exposure is allowing the upper 30cm to facet and weaken. In some places this has brought the skiing back to life, and in others its making for breakable conditions as old slabs weaken. Thankfully, this weakening is limited to the near surface snow and the thick mid pack remains supportive. Deeper trouble layers are still there, but for the most part they are deep enough to be bridged by the midpack.

Today's trip kept us on our toes from a skiing and surface condition perspective. They say variety is the spice of life, and that was certainly true today. We had fresh suncrust, breakable wind slab, rotten(but skiable) sastrugi and even some much appreciated soft snow.

Weather Summary

We are at the start of a gradual warming trend. Tomorrow's high is about -3, with even warmer temps later in the week. Sunday will approach zero degrees. Tomorrow (and likely the days to follow) will be cloudy with very light flurries. Winds will be moderate (30-40 km/hr) at ridgetop from the west.

More details can be found in the Mountain Weather Forecast.

Terrain and Travel Advice

Avoid thin areas like rocky outcrops where you're most likely to trigger avalanches on deep weak layers.

Problems

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.