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Avalanche Forecast

Archived

Jan 31st, 2023–Feb 1st, 2023

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

Regions

Akamina, Crowsnest North, Crowsnest South.

Watch for newly formed wind slabs from recent strong winds that may have developed further downslope at treeline and alpine elevations.

Confidence

High

Avalanche Summary

On Monday, skier and explosive triggered hard wind slabs, up to size 1, with a depth between 10 to 20 cm.

On Sunday, explosive control triggered a size 1.5 windslab in a reverse-loaded feature.

On Saturday, several wind slabs, up to size 1, were reported to be reactive to natural and human triggers.

Please continue to share any observations or photos on the Mountain Information Network.

Snowpack Summary

Strong to extreme winds continue to build isolated, hard wind slabs at alpine and treeline elevations. Above 2100 m these wind slabs are building over wind-affected surfaces, below this a melt-freeze crust formed in mid-January.

The mid-snowpack continues to settle and is well consolidated. Facets exist near the base of the snowpack. Total snowpack depth ranges between 100 cm to 200 cm in wind-loaded areas.

Weather Summary

Tuesday Night

Partly cloudy, trace accumulations. strong to extreme westerly ridgetop winds 50-70 km/h. Treeline temperatures of -15 °C.

Wednesday

Mostly cloudy with isolated flurries, and trace accumulation. Strong westerly ridgetop winds 50 to 60 km/h. Treeline temperatures -11 °C.

Thursday

Mainly cloudy, trace accumulation, strong to extreme westerly winds of 40 to 60 km/h, and treeline temperatures of -10 °C.

Friday

Mainly sunny. no new snow, winds weakening to moderate 20 to 40 km/h, treeline temperatures rising to -3 °C

More details can be found in the Mountain Weather Forecast.

Terrain and Travel Advice

  • Avoid lee and cross-loaded slopes at and above treeline.
  • Avoid steep, rocky, and wind effected areas where triggering slabs is more likely.
  • Use ridges or ribs to avoid areas of wind loaded snow.

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.