West winds are forecast to reach the moderate range in the alpine overnight Saturday. With up to 40cm of recent snow available for transport, expect fresh slabs on Sunday coupled with some loose dry avalanche activity.
West winds are forecast to increase to moderate in the alpine late in the day Saturday. If this happens, expect these winds to redistribute up to 40 cm of recent storm snow into slabs near ridge crest and trigger loose dry avalanches.
As in the BYK region, weak facets and depth hoar associated with remnant crusts can be found near the base of the snowpack. Evidence suggests that this problem is specific to shallower areas of the Little Yoho region. Avoiding thin areas will help limit your exposure to this problem.
Some small loose dry avalanches out of steep terrain on were observed on Friday.
Also on Friday, in the neighboring BYK region, there was evidence of a large deep avalanche off of Mount Lefroy North East face. This was observed on Jan 3rd but is believed to be 24-48 hours old.
25-45 cm unconsolidated snow makes up the surface of a 120-150 cm snowpack at treeline while 140-175cm can be found in the alpine. The mid-pack is generally strong but a weak crust/facet layer can often be found near the ground, particularly in shallower areas. Conditions within the Little Yoho Region are much better than areas further east in BYK. See the attached snow profile.
A trough will push east towards the region Saturday evening before the competing high pressure over the prairies pushes back west Sunday.
Winds will increase into the moderate range late Saturday with trace amounts of new snow overnight before winds shift northwest to bring clearing and a bit of cooling through Sunday.
