Northwest Coastal

Stick to low-angle terrain away from overhead hazard. A complex snowpack continues to produce large avalanches.

Very large persistent slab avalanches continue to be reported daily around the region. Most notable on Wednesday, included 4 size 1.5-2.5 avalanches that were remotely triggered from up to 350 m away. Many were reported to have failed on the weak layer from early March and others failed on the February drought layer.

A large and widespread wet loose avalanche cycle produced avalanches to size 3.5 Tuesday into Wednesday.

Variable wind affect and wind slab covers open terrain at upper elevations. A crust is found up to 1400 m and higher on solar slopes.

Three layers of concern currently exist in the upper-mid snowpack. Surface hoar and a crust that formed in mid-March can be found 30 to 70 cm below the snow surface. Below this, another layer of surface hoar that formed in early March can be found at a depth of 60 to 100 cm. Additionally, a layer of facets, surface hoar, and/or a crust from mid-February is buried 120 to 200 cm deep.

The remainder of the snowpack is well consolidated, and there are no current concerns.

Friday Night

Increasing clouds. 20 to 40 km/h southeast ridgetop wind. Treeline temperature -18 °C.

Saturday

Mostly sunny. 20 to 40 km/h east ridgetop wind. Treeline temperature -4 °C. Freezing level near 800 m.

Sunday

Sunny. 15 to 30 km/h southwest ridgetop wind. Treeline temperature +3 °C. Freezing level 1500 m.

Monday

Sunny. 5 to 15 km/h southwest ridgetop wind. Treeline temperature +6 °C. Freezing level 1900 m.

More details can be found in the Mountain Weather Forecast.

• Be aware of the potential for large, destructive avalanches due to deeply buried weak layers.
• Recent wind has varied in direction, so watch for wind slabs on all aspects.
• Avoid steep, sun-exposed slopes when the air temperature is warm or when solar radiation is strong.
• Cornice failures could trigger large and destructive avalanches.