South Rockies

Watch for changing conditions as you shift elevation and aspect - wind affected features may remain reactive to human triggers.

Moderate

• Uncertainty is due to the limited number of field observations.
• Uncertainty is due to the speed, direction, or duration of the wind and its effect on the snowpack.

On Friday, numerous explosive-triggered persistent slab avalanches, up to size 3, were reported in the alpine. These avalanches failed on a crust approximately 100 cm below the surface.

Over the past three days, human and explosive-triggered wind slab avalanches up to size 2 have been observed. With light snowfall and wind in the forecast, we expect continued reactivity of wind loaded features.

50 to 80 cm of recent snowfall combined with strong west/southwest winds has formed slabs over the 5 to 15 cm thick crust (see photo below).

A prominent crust is buried 100–150 cm below the surface in terrain above 1800 m. At lower elevations the mid and lower snowpack is moist to the ground.

Sunday Night
Mostly cloudy. 2 to 5 cm of snow. 40 km/h southwest ridgetop wind. Treeline temperature -7 °C. Freezing level 200 m.

Monday
Mostly cloudy. 1 to 4 cm of snow. 40 km/h southwest ridgetop wind. Treeline temperature -7 °C. Freezing level 700 m.

Tuesday
Mostly cloudy. 4 to 15 cm of snow. 40 km/h southwest ridgetop wind. Treeline temperature -5 °C. Freezing level 1000 m.

Wednesday
Mostly cloudy. 10 to 25 cm of snow. 30 km/h south ridgetop wind. Treeline temperature -3 °C. Freezing level 800 m.

More details can be found in the Mountain Weather Forecast.

• Watch for newly formed and reactive wind slabs as you transition into wind-affected terrain.
• Wind slabs are most reactive during their formation.
• If triggered, wind slabs avalanches may step down to deeper layers resulting in larger avalanches.