Recent snowfall amounts are highly variable across the region. Extra caution is advised in areas with >30 cm of fresh snow.
Wind slab avalanches are the main concern in most parts of the region. Areas south of Crowsnest pass likely have a more widespread storm slab problem as they received 30-60 cm of new snow on Wednesday.
THURSDAY NIGHT: Partly cloudy, light wind, alpine temperatures drop to -22 C.
FRIDAY: Sunny with a few clouds in the afternoon, 30-50 km/h wind from the east, alpine high temperatures around -12 C.
SATURDAY: Sunny, light wind, alpine high temperatures around -10 C.
SUNDAY: Sunny, 30-50 km/h wind from the west, alpine high temperatures around -10 C.
Wednesday's storm likely produced some dry loose avalanches in northern parts of the region (as has been observed in Kananaskis Country), while the southern parts of the region likely experienced a more widespread cycle of storm slab avalanches. Looking ahead, slopes that have been loaded by the wind are the most likely spots for human triggering across the region. There is more uncertainty about how quickly the storm snow has gained strength south of Crowsnest Pass. People travelling in that part of the region should approach avalanche terrain with greater caution.
An intense winter storm brought variable amounts of snow to the region on Wednesday. Areas south of Crowsnest Pass received 30-60 cm of snow, areas north of Crowsnest Pass received 10-30 cm of snow, and the Elk Valley and other parts of BC received 0-10 cm of snow. The new snow is heavily wind affected and expect to find wind slabs in open terrain. The most dangerous wind slabs and storm slabs will be in southern parts of the region that received >30 cm of snow. The new snow has fallen on a highly variable early season snowpack. Some terrain already had 50-100 cm of snow while other terrain had no snow prior to this storm. In areas that had prior snow, there could be a crust in the snowpack that could develop into a sliding layer for the snow above it.
