Dashboard Regions Weather Stations Radar Alerts Glossary
Contact About
Log In

Register for an account and never miss a forecast again!

Register

Avalanche Forecast

Archived

Dec 25th, 2021–Dec 26th, 2021

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, human triggered possible.
Below Treeline
Natural avalanches unlikely.

Regions

Banff Yoho Kootenay.

Here's hoping that some insulated layers were on your Christmas list. Enjoy the fresh snow, watch for wind slabs, and be prepared to deal with the cold. In these temperatures even a minor injury or delay can quickly become a big deal.

Weather Forecast

The Arctic air mass continues to bring cold temperatures to the region. Day time high temps will be near -25 C at valley bottom with the evening lows dropping below -30 C. A slight inversion may be present above treeline. Light flurries and light to moderate winds above treeline will continue Sunday, with a clearing trend starting Sunday evening.

Snowpack Summary

10-40 cm of snow over the last few days with S-SW winds have developed wind slabs at treeline and above. There is 50-70 cm over the Dec 2 crust/facet combo which exists below 2200m...this has not been an active problem yet but we are monitoring it closely. Shallow areas (<100 cm) may still have weak basal facets and a DPS issue near the ground.

Avalanche Summary

No new avalanche activity was reported Saturday with limited observations. Local ski hills have seen some recent wind slab avalanches in steep lee areas triggered by explosives and ski cutting. On Thursday we received reports of loose dry avalanches with the recent snow sitting over faceted snow and running far and fast.

Confidence

Due to the number of field observations

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.

Loose Dry

Loose Dry avalanches are the release of dry unconsolidated snow and typically occur within layers of soft snow near the surface of the snowpack. These avalanches start at a point and entrain snow as they move downhill, forming a fan-shaped avalanche. Other names for loose-dry avalanches include point-release avalanches or sluffs.