Wind Slabs
- Hochgebirge
- Waldgrenze
- Unterhalb der Waldgrenze
- Wahrscheinlichkeit
- Possible
- Größe
- 0
Into the early afternoon yesterday and the evening, the winds began to pick up at the upper-most elevation band. This morning ridgetop winds are gusting above 35 mph and nearing 50 mph in select areas. With a wide variety of surface conditions before this most recent storm, and 10" inches of snow available to transport new drifts will have formed overnight. Winds are forecast to continue gusting near 35 mph at ridgelines, with plenty of snow to drift into these sensitive new wind slabs. Watch for plumes off the high peaks and blowing snow as these are obvious signs of wind-drifts forming.
The key is to identify and avoid any signs of wind drifted snow such as rounded, smooth or scalloped drifts on steep slopes.
While the wind drifts will be most pronounced in the upper elevation band, this problem could be seen in isolated areas in the mid-elevation band as well. If you see signs of wind drifted snow and transportation occurring at mid-elevations avoid that terrain as well.