The snowpack will take time to gain strength. Unless you have professional level training and experience avoid avalanche terrain near treeline or higher elevations in the North Shore Mountains where the heaviest snowfall amounts are expected.
Wind loaded slopes will be the most sensitive and dangerous, but many steep slopes will be suspect, even without any wind affect, especially during times of intense snow.
No new avalanches reported; however, with intense snowfall at times a natural avalanche cycle overnight and Thursday was likely.
Keep sharing your observations via the MIN; it helps strengthen our information gathering.
Upper snowpack: up to 50 cm of recent snow.Mid-pack: a softer, weaker layer of less cohesive snow around 80 cm down should be gaining strength as it squishes. Lower-pack: Further down in the snowpack, there are reports of a thick melt-freeze crust and increasing strength.
At 1000 m the snowpack depth is around 130 cm. Lower treeline and below treeline elevation are still below the threshold for avalanches.
Thursday NightContinued precipitation with 15 mm / cm expected overnight. Storm totals by morning of ~ 60 mm water equivalent which means around ~50 cm at high elevations. Snow level ~300 m. Ridge temperatures around -3. Moderate southwest wind.
FridaySnow ending late in the day with up to 10 cm accumulating. Snow level steady around 300 m. Ridge temperatures as cold as -5 C. Light to moderate southwest wind.
SaturdayAnother storm forecast to bring around 30 to maybe 40 mm precipitation. Moderate southerly wind. Snow level rising to ~500m. Ridge top temperatures -2 to -5 C.
SundayOvercast but dry. Snow level ~500m. Temperatures aas cold as -5 C near the ridges and peaks.
More details can be found in the Mountain Weather Forecast.
