Afternoon Road Closures are anticipated on Maligne Lake Road and the Icefields Parkway (from Parkers Ridge to Saskatchewan Crossing)
Check AB511 for immediate updates
This problem layer is the crust and facets created by early February's warm spell. It is down 30-80 cm in the snowpack and is a 1-10 cm thick crust or multiple crusts with a layer of weak facets above.
Strong and extended solar and temperature change is expected on all aspects. Open and exposed terrain will accelerate this process and may initiate deeper instabilities.
The base of the snowpack is inherently weak and untrustworthy. Tickling this deep layer would result in a high consequence avalanche. Any avalanche in the upper snowpack has the potential to step down to the base of the snowpack.
Numerous loose wet, snowballing, and pinwheels were observed on steep sunny aspects. Large slabs have been observed in alpine lee features near the Icefields.
The forecasted warmup will be a dramatic change to the surface and mid-pack condition of the snowpack. This change will happen over an extremely reactive crust interface down 35-60cm. This persistent weak layer has been consistently producing large natural avalanches. The equally worrisome basal depth hoar makes up the bottom third of the snowpack. HS ranges from 80 to 130cm.
Clearing overnight Thursday
Parker Ridge - Friday
Sunny with cloudy periods on Friday. No new precip.
Alpine temperatures: High 3 °C.
Mostly Light SW winds.
Freezing level: 2600 m
Saturday
Sunny. Low -1 °C, High 6 °C.
Freezing level: 3200 m
Mountain Weather Forecast is available @ Avalanche Canada https://avalanche.ca/weather/forecast
