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

Dec 18th, 2020–Dec 19th, 2020

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

Regions

Kananaskis.

Despite the winds, there are still areas at tree line offering good skiing. With that in mind, limit exposure to large overhead slopes tomorrow. At first glance It looks like we are low on snow, but remember that the depressions on big slopes can hold a surprising amount of snow.

Confidence

High -

Weather Forecast

Tomorrow will be very similar to today: cloudy with flurries, 50km/hr west wind & a pleasant -6C. We are supposed to get a few flurries, but the main storm will arrive(hopefully) during the day on Sunday and into Monday. 

Avalanche Summary

A few minor slabs were noted in the northern part of the region. We do expect there were a few natural avalanches today given the high winds, however none were seen.

Snowpack Summary

We managed to get a few more centimeters added to the snowpack yesterday and today. This actually helped the travel and ski quality down low today. Any open area at treeline and above has seen significant wind transport. There was a noticeable windslab that formed during the day today. This will essentially sit on the Dec 9th crust/facet layer left over from the warm spell. So far this layer is not reacting, but being a crust, we can expect faceting above it. In which case it could quickly become more reactive. The Dec 9th is down about 20-40 depending on loading patterns. The Nov5th crust is down about 80cm at treeline and again, it seems to be cooperating with the rest of the snow pack.

Terrain and Travel

  • Watch for newly formed and reactive wind slabs as you transition into wind affected terrain.
  • If you are increasing your exposure to avalanche terrain, do it gradually as you gather information.

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.