Wind slabs may remain triggerable on isolated lee slopes.
Expect to find wind slabs in irregular terrain, including openings below treeline.
Recent strong wind has created widespread wind effect on snow surfaces. Small wind slabs may linger on any aspect and steep open slope, including openings below treeline, although the highest likelyhood is near ridgetops.
On Friday, explosive control near Pine Pass produced several cornice falls and entrained loose snow in the size 1.5 to 2.5 range.
Several size 1.5-2 wind slabs occurred on southwesterly slopes in the Pine Pass during Tuesday and Wednesday's strong winds.
Shooting cracks were also observed at Morfee on Tuesday.
Looking forward, riders may trigger wind slab avalanches on wind-loaded slopes in isolated areas.
Previous strong winds funnelled deep into valleys and formed extensive wind slabs on all aspects. This included even lower elevations with openings below treeline in some areas. Check all steep open slopes for slabs before committing to them.
In some areas, the wind stripped the snow in wind-exposed terrain down to the early-February melt-freeze crust. In wind-sheltered terrain, around 50 cm of snow overlies this crust. It seems well-bonded and is not considered a problem at this time.
The remainder of the snowpack is consolidated with no layers of concern.
Friday Night
Mostly cloudy. 0 to 2 cm of snow. 10 km/h southeast ridgetop wind. Treeline temperature -16 °C.
Saturday
Mix of sun and clouds. 20 km/h southeast ridgetop wind. Treeline temperature -19 °C.
Sunday
Mostly cloudy. 5 cm of snow. 40 km/h southeast ridgetop wind. Treeline temperature -19 °C.
Monday
Mostly cloudy. 0 to 3 cm of snow. 40 km/h southwest ridgetop wind. Treeline temperature -14 °C.
More details can be found in the Mountain Weather Forecast.
