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Avalanche risk in Western Canada worst in 100 years, experts say
On the same day searchers recovered the body of a 37-year-old Calgary man caught in an avalanche near Canmore, experts warned snowpack conditions in Western Canada are the most treacherous they've seen.
And with temperatures warming through the weekend, the unprecedented avalanche danger is expected to grow.
"This kind of thing hasn't happened in the past 100 years,"Karl Klassen, a public avalanche forecaster for the Canadian Avalanche Centre near Revelstoke, B. C., said of the conditions.
The body of the unidentified Calgarian was found beneath half a metre of snow by a search dog Thursday morning.
He was killed Wednesday afternoon while he and another man were climbing south of Canmore.
The pair scrambled to a high point of Big Sister mountain-- one of the Three Sisters -- and were sliding back down on a snow patch when the avalanche was triggered, said George Field, a public safety specialist in Kananaskis Country.
The victim was further down the slope and was forced over a cliff by the rush of snow, Field said. The other man was higher up the slope and managed to roll out of the avalanche.
Avalanche experts across West-ern Canada are warning backcountry users should be downright scared about venturing into any terrain that could be covered by an avalanche.
Wednesday's death on the west face of Three Sisters brings the number of avalanche fatalities in Western Canada this winter to 14.
Though the season is less than halfway through, the toll is already slightly above the 10-year average of 13.8 avalanche deaths in Canada per season. All of this winter's deaths, including eight in a snowmobiling accident last month near Fernie, B. C., have occurred in Western Canada.
Klassen, who has 30 years' experience in the backcountry, said he does not recall such a dangerously unpredictable season for avalanche conditions.
The number of major slides released over the past two weeks is "unprecedented," he said Thursday.
Avalanches this season have wiped out trees that are more than a century old. Many slides have run farther and wider than ever witnessed, and some areas have seen more widespread avalanche cycles than ever before.
The snow has been unstable during the past week in the area around Wednesday's death, said William Ripley, a dogsled guide with Snowy Owl.
"We had a couple days when they were going off non-stop, back ranges and stuff," Ripley said, but noted the Three Sisters are not normally a problem area.
"When the avalanche breaks free, it sounds like thunder 'cause there's a big crack," he said.
Searchers found a tuque and ski pole in the snow Wednesday afternoon and used a probe to try to find the body, but could not. The search was called off due to darkness and concerns another avalanche might be triggered. RCMP have not released the identity of Wednesday's avalanche victim.
"By no means are we telling people to never go in the mountains here, because it is an enjoyable sport for a lot of people," said Sgt. Patrick Webb.
"We're telling them to be very aware of the danger of avalanche right now. It's virtually extreme everywhere you're going with the snow pack and the weather."
Field agreed Western Canada's mountain ranges are especially dangerous this season. A highly unstable snowpack has been created by a series of unusual weather patterns. Early in the season the mountains received much less snow than usual.A prolonged cold snap then weakened the facets that bond the snow, creating a weak crust. Then came a two-week storm cycle, which loaded the peaks with heavy snow.
Avalanche risk in Western Canada worst in 100 years, experts say
Be careful out there people
On the same day searchers recovered the body of a 37-year-old Calgary man caught in an avalanche near Canmore, experts warned snowpack conditions in Western Canada are the most treacherous they've seen.
And with temperatures warming through the weekend, the unprecedented avalanche danger is expected to grow.
"This kind of thing hasn't happened in the past 100 years,"Karl Klassen, a public avalanche forecaster for the Canadian Avalanche Centre near Revelstoke, B. C., said of the conditions.
The body of the unidentified Calgarian was found beneath half a metre of snow by a search dog Thursday morning.
He was killed Wednesday afternoon while he and another man were climbing south of Canmore.
The pair scrambled to a high point of Big Sister mountain-- one of the Three Sisters -- and were sliding back down on a snow patch when the avalanche was triggered, said George Field, a public safety specialist in Kananaskis Country.
The victim was further down the slope and was forced over a cliff by the rush of snow, Field said. The other man was higher up the slope and managed to roll out of the avalanche.
Avalanche experts across West-ern Canada are warning backcountry users should be downright scared about venturing into any terrain that could be covered by an avalanche.
Wednesday's death on the west face of Three Sisters brings the number of avalanche fatalities in Western Canada this winter to 14.
Though the season is less than halfway through, the toll is already slightly above the 10-year average of 13.8 avalanche deaths in Canada per season. All of this winter's deaths, including eight in a snowmobiling accident last month near Fernie, B. C., have occurred in Western Canada.
Klassen, who has 30 years' experience in the backcountry, said he does not recall such a dangerously unpredictable season for avalanche conditions.
The number of major slides released over the past two weeks is "unprecedented," he said Thursday.
Avalanches this season have wiped out trees that are more than a century old. Many slides have run farther and wider than ever witnessed, and some areas have seen more widespread avalanche cycles than ever before.
The snow has been unstable during the past week in the area around Wednesday's death, said William Ripley, a dogsled guide with Snowy Owl.
"We had a couple days when they were going off non-stop, back ranges and stuff," Ripley said, but noted the Three Sisters are not normally a problem area.
"When the avalanche breaks free, it sounds like thunder 'cause there's a big crack," he said.
Searchers found a tuque and ski pole in the snow Wednesday afternoon and used a probe to try to find the body, but could not. The search was called off due to darkness and concerns another avalanche might be triggered. RCMP have not released the identity of Wednesday's avalanche victim.
"By no means are we telling people to never go in the mountains here, because it is an enjoyable sport for a lot of people," said Sgt. Patrick Webb.
"We're telling them to be very aware of the danger of avalanche right now. It's virtually extreme everywhere you're going with the snow pack and the weather."
Field agreed Western Canada's mountain ranges are especially dangerous this season. A highly unstable snowpack has been created by a series of unusual weather patterns. Early in the season the mountains received much less snow than usual.A prolonged cold snap then weakened the facets that bond the snow, creating a weak crust. Then came a two-week storm cycle, which loaded the peaks with heavy snow.
Avalanche risk in Western Canada worst in 100 years, experts say
Be careful out there people
