Head to high north facing slopes to find the best conditions.
Avoid thin and rocky start zones, persistent slab avalanches have been recently reported.
Cornices are weak and may break further back on ridgelines than expected. These large loads can trigger buried weak layers on the slope below.
Several persistent weak layers exist in the upper meter of the snowpack. The likelihood of persistent slab avalanches will increase if the melt-freeze crust near the surface breaks down.
Over the weekend, small wet loose avalanches were reported to size 1.
Avalanches on buried weak layers continue to be sporadically reported from thin and rocky terrain features. Additionally, on Friday, a natural cornice fall triggered a 2.5-sized slab on a northeasterly alpine slope.
Snowfall totals may reach 10 cm in higher terrain in the West Purcells, sitting over a crust or moist snow. Surface snow at lower elevations is expected to remain wet.
Several weak layers from early March, mid-February and late January can be found in the mid and lower snowpack. These layers remain a concern where a thick crust isn’t present above.
The base of the snowpack is generally faceted.
Monday Night
Cloudy with 2 to 5 cm of snow. 30 to 50 km/h south ridgetop wind. Freezing level lowering to 1500 m.
Tuesday
Partly cloudy with up to 5 cm of snow. 20 to 40 km/h southwest ridgetop wind. Treeline temperature 0 °C. Freezing level around 2000 m.
Wednesday
Partly cloudy with up to 5 cm. 20 to 30 km/h southwest ridgetop wind. Treeline temperature 0 °C. Freezing level around 2000 m.
Thursday
Clear skies with 20 to 30 km/h southwest ridgetop winds. Freezing levels around 2000 m.
More details can be found in the Mountain Weather Forecast.
