While the skiing is basically non-existent, the ice climbing, winter hiking and ice skating are all in great shape. Hikers, snowshoers, scramblers and climbers should still keep an eye out for avalanche exposure. Avoid steep, confined snow gullies or snow slopes above cliffs.
Slabs are reactive on the basal facets and possibly an intact crust at lower elevations. These will run far and fast if they trigger.
No new observed or reported.
Terms like, "storm snow", HST, HN24, HN48, or even HN144 won't be in this snowpack description. We haven't seen a flake in ages! Thanks to this extended weather pattern, our excuse of a snowpack has dried out and become a combination of old, weak windslabs and loose, sugary facets. The alpine is home to isolated windslabs that are probably getting touchier as they break down. Generally windslabs will become less reactive as they break down, but given how these current slabs are precariously perched on a house of cards (facets being the correct term), expect them to get touchier. If that wasn't enough, expect them to entrain a fair amount of snow as they travel. In other snow pack news, the surface hoar that's been steadily growing will become very relevant once it does snow. It appears the feathery surface hoar is widespread and stretching up to at least treeline.
The clear, cold and dry weather we've enjoyed for the past while is moving on. Winds will increase overnight Friday and by Saturday morning they'll be moderate at ridgelines, and out of the SW. Temperatures will be steady at -12, give or take a couple of degrees. We may even wring a few snow flakes out of the incoming clouds. Don't want to jinx it, but we may get up to 5cm by tomorrow evening!! Sunday will see the flurries continue, but amounts are uncertain.
More details can be found in the Mountain Weather Forecast.
