Regions
Banff Yoho Kootenay.
Watch locally for snow amounts this weekend. Ski quality will be refreshed, but we will see a slow rise in the avalanche danger if the extended forecast holds true. SH
Weather Forecast
Scattered flurries expected Saturday with mod to strong SW winds and freezing levels to valley bottom. Saturday night through next week brings unsettled weather with 5-10cm expected each day, with the highest amounts along the divide in areas like Bow Summit, and the least in the Banff, Sunshine region.
Snowpack Summary
Surface hoar, sun crust and facets now buried by 5-20cm in the alpine. Surface hoar to 20mm exists up to 1800m in the Sunshine area. Above 1800m, S-SW facing terrain has a sun crust and other aspects are soft facets or wind hammered snow. Snowpack depth is 80-100cm at treeline. Soft wind slabs forming in immediate lees of ridge crests.
Avalanche Summary
Lake Louise reporting only small soft wind slabs in the immediate lees of ridge crests. A field trip to the Sunshine are saw no new activity.
Confidence
Forecast snowfall amounts are uncertain on Saturday
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.