Put your guard up as you get into open, wind-affected terrain. Large natural and human-triggered wind slabs have occurred in the alpine in recent days.
Up to 40 cm of recent snowfall was accompanied by strong southwest winds forming reactive wind slabs in the alpine. Winds have shifted to the northeast and may form fresh wind slabs in an atypical, reverse-loading pattern.
On Wednesday, operators in the region reported natural and remotely triggered wind slabs up to size 2.5 on north and east aspects in the alpine. These large remotely triggered avalanches are a strong indicator of an unstable snowpack!
Similar activity may continue into Friday and riders should continue to avoid wind-loaded areas in the alpine and treeline.
At upper elevations, 10 to 40 cm of recent snowfall has been redeposited by strong winds. Below this, a hard crust exists on all aspects and elevations, except on north-facing slopes over 2000 m.
A layer of weak faceted snow above a crust formed in early February is now buried 50 to 120 cm deep. This layer is generally getting stronger and is shielded by crusts above it. It has not produced any recent avalanches.
Thursday Night
Cloudy with clear periods. Ridge wind 15 to 30 km/h from the northeast. Treeline temperatures drop to -6 °C. Freezing level drops to valley bottom.
Friday
A mix of sun and cloud with isolated flurries. Ridge wind light from the north. Treeline temperatures reach a high of 0 °C. Freezing level rises to 1800 m.
Saturday
A mix of sun and cloud with isolated flurries. Ridge wind 15 to 30 km/h from the southwest. Treeline temperatures reach a high of 0 °C. Freezing level rises to 1900 m.
Sunday
Mostly cloudy with light flurries. Ridge winds 20 to 40 km/h from the southwest. Treeline temperatures reach a high of 0 °C. Freezing level rises to 1900 m.
More details can be found in the Mountain Weather Forecast.
