Avalanche danger may increase during the day with warm temperatures and sunny skies. Conditions could change quickly, so back off slopes and use extra caution by the afternoon.
High freezing levels and sunshine may cause surface snow to lose cohesion and produce wet avalanches in steep terrain features.
Warm temperatures promoted wet loose sluffing and pinwheeling on steep slopes up to size 1.
Natural and human-triggered wet avalanches are possible on Friday, especially on steep south-facing slopes.
On January 30-31, numerous natural, human-triggered, and explosive-triggered avalanches were reported throughout the region. All occurring on the mid-January buried surface hoar/facet/crust layer.
A thin melt-freeze surface crust may exist to mountain top but will soften with warming during the day. Below this, 15 to 20 cm of moist snow sits over a surface hoar/ crust layer, which was buried in late January. The buried surface hoar is largest in sheltered treeline and below treeline terrain.
The mid and lower snowpack is well settled.
Thursday Night
Clear skies. 20 km/h south ridgetop wind. Treeline temperature 6 °C. Freezing level 3400 m.
Friday
Sunny. 30 km/h southwest ridgetop wind. Treeline temperature 4 °C. Freezing level 2900 m.
Saturday
Mix of sun and clouds. 4 to 5 mm of precipitation as snow or rain at treeline. 50 km/h southwest ridgetop wind. Treeline temperature 1 °C. Freezing level 1900 m.
Sunday
Mostly cloudy. 1 to 5 cm of snow. 30 km/h southwest ridgetop wind. Treeline temperature -1 °C. Freezing level 1600 m.
More details can be found in the Mountain Weather Forecast.
