Avalanche Forecast
Kananaskis Country, Alberta Parks
Pay attention to the affect of solar radiation on friday. As temperatures warm up and the sun hits slopes, stability will decrease. Start early!
Avalanche Problem 1: Wind Slabs
What Elevation?
Which Slopes?
Chances of Avalanches?
Expected Size?
Travel and Terrain Advice
- Evaluate unsupported slopes critically.
- Be careful with wind loaded pockets, especially near ridge crests and roll-overs.
Avalanche Problem 2: Cornices
What Elevation?
Which Slopes?
Chances of Avalanches?
Expected Size?
Cornices are large and looming. When the solar radiation is strong and/or the air temperature rises, cornice collapses could be a major concern.
Travel and Terrain Advice
- Cornices become weak with daytime heating.
- Pay attention to overhead hazards like cornices which could easily trigger persistent slabs.
- Give cornices a wide berth when travelling on or below ridges.
Avalanche Problem 3: Persistent Slabs
What Elevation?
Which Slopes?
Chances of Avalanches?
Expected Size?
The March 15th melt-freeze crust, buried 30-50cm on solar aspects, could be an issue on bigger slopes, particularly in the Alpine. Evaluate the snowpack for the presence/absence of this problem layer before committing to a terrain feature.
Travel and Terrain Advice
- Avoid steep Southerly aspects.
Avalanche Summary
No new avalanche activity.
Snowpack Summary
10cm of new snow over the past 24hrs with only light easterly winds. This new snow is overlying a widespread supportive melt freeze up to 2100m and up to the peaks on the solar aspects. Windslabs are still being encountered along ridgelines and in cross loaded features. Use caution in thinner or unsupported terrain near these areas. The March 15th layer is down 50cm and is slowly gaining strength but we are still treating this layer cautiously. Dig down and be curious with it and evaluate it before committing.
Weather Forecast
The snow will taper off overnight and winds will begin to increase into the moderate range out of the west. Temperatures are forecat to be around -7C with a freezing level around 1900m When the sun does come out, expect stability to quickly decrease. These decreases will be more apparent on solar aspects especially in steeper thin rocky terrain. Pay attention to whats overhead and in the sun. Cornices will also become weak with daytime heating so use caution.
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Watch for wind slabs in Alpine especially near cross-loaded gullies and immediately below ridge-lines. These slabs may become more sensitive to triggering as the temperatures rise during the day.