Purcells

It sounds like good riding conditions out there but large human triggered avalanches are possible. Start with small test slopes and build up slowly to bigger features. There is still a lot of uncertainty associated with this early winter snowpack.

Moderate

Fairly benign weather is expected through the forecast period. WEDNESDAY: Flurries overnight, light northwest winds, -10 at 1500m. THURSDAY: no snow is expected, light to moderate south winds, -10 at 1500m, FRIDAY: Flurries, light west winds, -10 to -15 at 1500m.

Avalanche activity appears to have tapered off since the weekend. Avalanche professionals in the field are reporting sluffing in steep terrain in response to skier traffic (aka good riding conditions) and some lingering reactive pockets of wind slab in steep lee features. No new avalanches have been reported on the layer of buried surface hoar since last week, however, people have been experiencing wumphing and other signs of instability from safe terrain as they travel between 1400 and 1800m.

There is apparently very little wind effect in the alpine. About 15 to 40cm of snow now sits above a crust that extends up to 1800m. The early December persistent weak layer can now be found down 30-80cm. This layer can be found as an old sun crust on solar aspects in the alpine, or as large grained surface hoar and small facets in isolated pockets bellow treeline. It is mainly a problem between 1400m and 1800m, although it may extend higher in the south of Invermere. Snow pit tests on this interface have been widely variable; producing sudden planar, resistant planar and sudden collapse results. The mid and lower portions of the snowpack are thought to be mainly well settled.