Recently formed strom and wind slabs may still need some time to settle and stabilize. Investigate the bond between recent snow and underlying surfaces before committing to larger terrain.
Recent snow and wind has formed widespread storm slab and wind slabs. Surface slabs will be most reactive in areas where it's overlaying a layer of preserved surface hoar or where wind has formed stiff cohesive slabs.
Several storm slab and wind slab avalanches up to size 2 were reported on Monday and Tuesday, both natural and rider-triggered. While explosive control work produced a few storm slab avalanches up to size 3.
Up to 40 cm of new snow arrived with strong, variable winds, creating widespread storm and wind slabs. The recent snow has buried a layer of surface hoar in wind-sheltered terrain and a sun crust on steep south-facing slopes.
A slightly older layer of large surface hoar may be found down roughly 50-80 cm below the surface. Otherwise, the snowpack is generally well consolidated and bonding.
The lower snowpack consists of a layer of weak, sugary crystals that is slowly gaining strength and doesn't currently appear to present the same problem as neighboring regions to the north and east. However, we continue to track the layer and watch for any signs that it could wake up and produce very large avalanches.
Wednesday night
Mostly clear / Moderate east ridgetop winds / Treeline temperatures -15 to -20 C.
Thursday
Sunny / Moderate northeast to east ridgetop winds / Treeline temperatures -15 to -20 C.
Friday
Sunny / Light to moderate northeast ridgetop winds / Treeline temperatures -15 to -20 C.
Saturday
A mix of sun and clouds / Light southwest ridgetop winds / Treeline temperatures -10 to -15 C.
More details can be found in the Mountain Weather Forecast.
