Sunday is shaping up to be a great day for touring with plenty of fresh snow and stable weather.
Carry avalanche safety gear (transceiver, shovel and probe).
Deposits of Wind Slab may be encountered particularly, on slopes facing North through to East above about 1700m. Avoid ridge line entry points and other steep unsupported slopes if you encounter pockets of stiff, wind driven snow.
No back country avalanches reported over the past 24 hours. Control work at Treble Cone 25/7 produced numerous Wind Slab avalanches on East facing terrain (mostly size 1 and a couple of size 2).
If you see evidence of avalanches in the back country please enter a Public Observation.
A significant amount of new snow has fallen over the past 72 hours (50 - 60cm in the Albert Burn and at least 30cm further east). Much of this snow has landed with minimal wind effect. Prior to the storm which arrived mid week, the snow pack was mostly stable. Having said that, facets and depth hoar (weak, sugary forms) have been found in places. These pockets of questionable strength appear to be quite isolated and are most likely to exist in steep, shady areas (facing East to South).
Mainly fine with perhaps the odd shower.
Light winds.
Freezing level - 600m climbing to 1000m in the morning.
Recent snow will have reduced the sliding danger. However, keep in mind that the underlying pack remains shallow especially, at lower elevations. Rocks and icy areas may be lurking below a thin cover of fresh snow.
High
New Zealand Avalanche Advisory (NZ Mountain Safety Council)
