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Avalanche Forecast

Archived

Feb 22nd, 2016–Feb 23rd, 2016

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

Regions

Little Yoho.

The thicker snowpack in the Little Yoho region seems to be bonding well with a slow decrease in the avalanche danger. Dig down to check for persistent weak layers and watch for shallow snow pack areas where basal facets could be a problem.

Weather Forecast

A very strong ridge has moved into the area and we will see clear skies for Tuesday with light NW winds. Temps will remain cool but the sun effect will be quite strong. The ridge will remain in place for the rest of the week.

Snowpack Summary

The Jan 6 layer of surface hoar/facets is down 120cm at treeline. This layer is is gaining strength and producing hard to no result in tests. A layer down 50cm (Feb 11) contains surface hoar in isolated locations at treeline  and is producing moderate results. Overall a well settled snowpack with a few isolated wind slabs in the alpine.

Avalanche Summary

Two wind slab avalanches were observed recently on Mt. Field at 2300-2400m. These were size 1.5 to 2 in un-skiable terrain. 

Confidence

Due to the number of field observations

Problems

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.

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.