High elevation winds have been strong to extreme for the last week, so be on the lookout for windslabs if venturing into high, windy spots.
It has been weeks since a deep slab was seen in Little Yoho, but a weak snowpack persists in shallow areas - ski the thick, avoid the thin
Recent snow and extreme W to SW wind have developed slabs in high alpine terrain that is exposed to the wind. These will be bigger in areas with more new snow and may run further than expected if they pick up facetted snow in steep gullied terrain.
The snowpack is generally deeper and, thus, stronger in the Little Yoho subregion than in most of the BYK forecast region. However, thin snowpack areas, such as windward and exposed terrain, will have weak basal facets at the base of the snowpack.
No avalanches were observed or reported in Little Yoho on Jan 14
Up to 20 cm of snow in the last week has been blown into slabs in high alpine areas. At treeline and below, a surface sun crust exists on steep south aspect. This recent snow sits on a layer of facets and surface hoar in some locations, although we haven't seen many avalanches sliding on this layer yet. The mid-pack is generally strong; however, a weak facet layer can be found near the ground in shallow snowpack areas. At treeline, average snowpack depth ranges from 120 to 150 cm.
Strong westerly winds at ridgetop and mild temperatures will dominate on Wednesday. This will be accompanied by variable cloud cover and trace snow accumulations.
Thursday, we expect extreme SW winds accompanied by up to 10 cm new snow.
On Friday, we will see cooling temperatures and easing winds as arctic air moves in for the weekend.
