Yukon

New snow and wind are forming fresh, reactive slabs in leeward terrain features. Seek out wind-sheltered terrain for the best and safest riding.

On Monday a size 1.5 wind slab was observed in the White Pass. On Sunday, size 2 avalanches were reported in the Three Guardsman area of Haines Summit.

Looking forward, wind slabs are likely to be reactive naturally and to rider triggers.

By the end of the day Friday, 10 to 20 cm of new snow sits over a variety of surfaces, including a melt-freeze crust on solar slopes and hard wind-affected surfaces or faceted snow and surface hoar on shady slopes. Strong southwesterly winds have loaded deeper deposits on lee slopes.

A weak layer of facets and a crust from early December is buried 60 to 150 cm deep on all aspects up to 1750 m. This layer has not produced recent avalanche activity or test results and is not currently a concern.

Snow depth varies from 100 cm at highway elevations to over 200 cm in the alpine.

Thursday night

Cloudy with a trace of snow. 30 to 40 km/h south ridgetop wind. Treeline temperature -5 °C.

Friday

Mostly cloudy with 10 to 15 cm of snow. 40 to 50 km/h southeast ridgetop wind. Treeline temperature -5 °C.

Saturday

Partly cloudy with 5 to 10 cm of snow. 20 to 40 km/h southeast ridgetop wind. Treeline temperature -5 °C.

Sunday

Partly cloudy. 20 to 30 km/h southeast ridgetop wind. Treeline temperature -7 °C.

More details can be found in the Mountain Weather Forecast.

• Avoid freshly wind-loaded features, especially near ridge crests, rollovers, and in steep terrain.
• Seek out sheltered terrain where new snow hasn't been affected by wind.
• Watch for signs of instability like whumpfing, hollow sounds, shooting cracks, or recent avalanches.