Big scary avalanches!
Warm temperatures and sun further destabilize the already spicy snowpack conditions. Stay disciplined and resist venturing into consequential terrain.
Wind slabs are most likely to be triggered in lee terrain features near ridge tops and on cross-loaded features. Wind slabs have potential to step down to deeper layers, resulting in large, destructive avalanches.
Persistent weak layers have become reactive with recent snow loads and warm temperatures. Remote triggers and wide propagations have been common on these layers in recent days.
Periods of strong sun and warm temperatures will destabilize the surface snow on sun-exposed slopes. Loose avalanches have potential to step down to deeper layers, resulting in large, destructive avalanches.
Very large, scary persistent slab avalanche activity continues to be reported daily. On Thursday alone, several remotely triggered avalanches were reported size 2.5-3 (very large!) at alpine and treeline elevations. Many of these avalanches were triggered by riders from hundreds of meters away. Slabs have been 50 to 100 cm deep and have resulted in large and destructive avalanches.
Surface snow is moist or wet on solar aspects and at low elevations. At upper elevations, previous strong wind has redistributed surface snow and scoured exposed areas.
60 to 80 cm of snow continues to settle in warm temperatures, over a weak layer of facets and surface hoar buried in mid February.
Another weak layer, from late January, is buried 80 to 120 cm deep. This may present as a crust on sunny slopes, sugary facets in most places, and surface hoar in sheltered spots. Large natural, remote and human-triggered avalanches continue to be reported on this layer.
Friday night
Partly cloudy. 20 to 30 km/h south ridgetop wind. Treeline temperature +1°C. Freezing level 2700 m.
Saturday
Mix of sun and cloud. 20 to 40 km/h south ridgetop wind. Treeline temperature +3°C. Freezing level 2300 m.
Sunday
Cloudy with 2 to 6 cm of snow. <10 km/h variable ridgetop wind. Treeline temperature 0°C. Freezing level 1500 m.
Monday
Sunny. 20 to 30 km/h northeast ridgetop wind. Treeline temperature 0°C. Freezing level 1600 m.
More details can be found in the Mountain Weather Forecast.
