Loose Wet
- Hochgebirge
- Waldgrenze
- Unterhalb der Waldgrenze
- Wahrscheinlichkeit
- Unlikely
- Größe
- 1
Clear skies, continued cooling by ENE winds, and near-freezing temperatures should have allowed most of yesterday's wet snow to refreeze overnight. As soon as the sun hits the slopes today, this refrozen snow will start to soften. Wet surface snow will form first on E-SE aspects then progress to S-SW-W aspects as the day warms up. The recent snow will be most sensitive to warming since it has not been through as many melt-freeze cycles. In most places, limited amounts of recent snow exist on these aspects so wet snow instabilities should remain small with roller balls or pinwheels predominating. In areas north of Tahoe City along the Sierra Crest where more recent snow accumulated, a small sluff of loose wet snow is not impossible on an isolated near or below treeline terrain feature. At upper elevations, cool NE winds should help limit the amount of wet surface snow formation.
Finishing backcountry travel in time for a lunch date or going to shaded northerly aspects to search for lingering pockets of cold snow will help find better snow and will limit potential exposure to an isolated and unlikely but not impossible loose wet avalanche. Watch for changing snow conditions as the day warms up and travel using normal caution in the backcountry.