Watch for wind loading primarily around treeline elevations. Wind slabs may not bond well with the hard surfaces below. Expect reactivity and give them a wide berth.
Southwesterly winds have formed wind slabs on north and east facing slopes. Look carefully for windslabs at all elevations. Pay particular attention to wind loading mid to low on slopes, and be wary of cross-loaded features.
A melt freeze crust from mid-January has shown some reactivity, small wind slabs may step down to this layer resulting in a bigger avalanche.
On Saturday, wind slab avalanches were reported to size 1.5, triggered by sleds. A few small natural wind slab avalanches were also observed in the alpine.
Please post your field observations and photos on the Mountain Information Network.
Around 15 cm of new snow has fallen in the last 3 days. At higher elevations this sits over extremely wind affected surfaces including large sastrugi. Many alpine areas may not hold new snow and instead be stripped back to hard surfaces.
A melt-freeze crust with facets above, sits 50 to 100 cm deep. This crust could be a good sliding surface for avalanche activity but has shown limited reactivity so far. We are monitoring this layer going forward as it may become a persistent problem.
The mid to lower snowpack is considered well bonded at this point. Currently we are not seeing the same basal weak layers and reactivity that many of the neighboring regions are experiencing this season.
Monday Night
Cloudy with flurries, 2-4 cm. Light to moderate southerly winds. Freezing levels at valley bottom.
Tuesday
Mainly cloudy with light snowfall, up to 5 cm. Light to moderate southwest winds. Freezing levels at valley bottom. Alpine high of -7 °C.
Wednesday
Cloudy with sunny periods and isolated flurries. Moderate westerly winds. Alpine high of -6 °C. Freezing levels 500 m.
Thursday
Cloudy with light snowfall overnight and into Thursday. Strong southwest winds. Alpine highs of -7 °C, freezing levels around 1000 m.
More details can be found in the Mountain Weather Forecast.
