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Avalanche Forecast

Archived

Jan 18th, 2024–Jan 19th, 2024

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

Regions

South Rockies, Bull, Crowsnest North, Crowsnest South, Elkford East, Elkford West.

Expect to see wind slabs on a variety of aspects as the wind switches from northwest to southwest on Friday.

Confidence

Moderate

Avalanche Summary

There was an explosives triggered size 2 wind slab avalanche reported on Thursday in the southern portion of the region. This ran on facets buried in early January.

There were a few natural wind slab, storm slab and dry loose avalanches to size 1 and 1.5 reported on Wednesday and Thursday.

If you go out in the backcountry, please consider sharing your observations on the Mountain Information Network (MIN).

Snowpack Summary

Recent new snow has accumulated over faceted snow and/or previously wind-affected snow. At treeline and below there is a weak layer of facets over a crust, down 40 to 80 cm. This layer was reactive to skier triggering primarily on east aspects between 1500 and 2000 m last week in the south of the region.

The mid and lower snowpack contains a series of crusts and faceted snow.

The height of snow at treeline is roughly 80 to 150 cm.

Weather Summary

Thursday Night

Mostly clear , northwest alpine wind 10 to 20 km/h, treeline temperature -21°C.

Friday

Mostly cloudy, 1-2 cm of snow, southwest alpine wind 20 to 40 km/h, treeline temperature -11 °C.

Saturday

Mostly cloudy with isolated flurries, southwest alpine wind 20 to 50 km/h, treeline temperature -7 °C.

Sunday

Mostly cloudy with isolated flurries, southwest alpine wind 15 to 30 km/h, treeline temperature -5 °C.

More details can be found in the Mountain Weather Forecast.

Terrain and Travel Advice

  • Watch for newly formed and reactive wind slabs as you transition into wind affected terrain.
  • Be aware of the potential for loose avalanches in steep terrain where snow hasn't formed a slab.
  • Recent wind has varied in direction so watch for wind slabs on all aspects.

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.