Wind slabs remain the primary concern as light snowfall and strong wind continues. Watch for wind slabs around ridgelines and in mid slope terrain features in areas that see stronger winds.
Wind slabs are present at higher elevations, in north and east facing terrain features. Small accumulations of fresh snow and continued winds may continue to build these slabs.
A layer of facets sitting on a crust buried in January has recently been reactive. Triggering is most likely in areas where the snowpack is thin and weak, or with a heavy load like a cornice fall or the weight of a smaller avalanche in motion triggering this deeper layer.
Reactive wind slabs were reported on Sunday at alpine elevations in north facing terrain.
On Saturday a rider triggered a cornice fall from a distance, which produced a size 3 persistent slab avalanche on a northeast aspect at 1750 m. The avalanche was 200 cm deep and was suspected to have failed on a layer of facets above a crust buried in January.
Let us know what you are seeing by submitting a report to the Mountain Information Network.
Gradual accumulations of fresh snowfall will be redistributed by southerly winds into wind slabs over previously wind affected snow on north and east facing slopes. South facing terrain will likely be stripped back to a crust by these winds.
A weak layer of surface hoar/crust/facets buried in early January is now over 1 m deep in most areas. This layer has produced recent avalanche activity and remains a concern in terrain where the snowpack is thin.
The lower snowpack consists of basal facets, particularly in shallow areas.
Wednesday Night
Cloudy with up to 5 cm. Moderate to strong southerly winds. Freezing levels drop to 500 m.
Thursday
Cloudy with up to 5 cm. Moderate to strong southerly winds. Freezing levels around 1200 m.
Friday
Mostly cloudy with trace amounts of snowfall. Moderate southerly winds. Freezing levels remain below 1000 m.
Saturday
Light snowfall returns with strong to extreme southerly winds. Freezing levels around 1000 m.
More details can be found in the Mountain Weather Forecast.
