North Rockies

Terrain that is sheltered from the wind will hold soft, loose snow with no slab properties. That's where you'll find the best riding and the lowest avalanche danger.

No new avalanches have been reported since December 21.

If you are out in the backcountry consider submitting your observations to the MIN.

Since Wednesday, 20 to 40 cm of recent snow has been redistributed as wind slabs on lee slopes by south through west wind. This covers heavily wind affected surfaces (or bare ground on south-facing slopes)

In sheltered areas, a crust from early December sits under as much as 80 cm of settling snow. Snowpack tests and a lack of recent avalanches suggest that this layer has gotten stronger and is no longer a concern. However, observations are limited in this region.

There are no current deeper layers of concern.

Data is very limited in this region, please submit MIN reports if you head into the mountains. Any information or photos are helpful!

Friday Night

Mostly clear. 20 to 30 km/h southwest ridgetop wind. Treeline temperature -7 °C.

Saturday

Mostly sunny. 5 to 15 km/h southwest ridgetop wind. Treeline temperature -5 °C.

Sunday

Mostly cloudy with up to 3 cm of snow. 10 to 20 km/h south ridgetop wind. Treeline temperature -6 °C.

Monday

Mostly cloudy with 1 cm of snow. 5 to 10 km/h southwest ridgetop wind. Treeline temperature -10 °C.

More details can be found in the Mountain Weather Forecast.

• Expect slab conditions to change drastically as you move into wind-exposed terrain.
• Be careful with wind-loaded pockets, especially near ridge crests and rollovers.
• Look for signs of instability: whumphing, hollow sounds, shooting cracks, and recent avalanches.