Storm slabs may be reactive to human triggers as they sit on a buried weak layer. There is also a deeper, persistent weak layer in the snowpack that could be reactive to human triggers, especially in shallow snowpack areas.
With up to 25 cm of fresh snow sitting on a weak layer of surface hoar in many areas, be aware of the potential for human triggered storm slab avalanches. These avalanches could potentially step down to a persistent weak layer that is down about 50-60 cm, resulting in larger avalanches than expected
SATURDAY NIGHT - Cloudy with clear periods / light northwest winds / alpine low temperature near -9
SUNDAY - A mix of sun and cloud / northwest wind 15-30 km/h / alpine high temperature near -8
MONDAY - A mix of sun and cloud / southwest wind, 25-50 km/h / alpine high temperature near -7
TUESDAY - Mainly cloudy with isolated flurries / southwest winds, 40-60 km/h / alpine high temperature near -4
There were a few reports of explosives triggered avalanches up to size 2 on Friday.
There were a few human and explosives triggered avalanches size 1-2 reported on Thursday.
Check out this MIN report of an avalanche in the Big White Backcountry on Thursday.
10- 25 cm of recent fresh snow sits on a weak layer of feathery surface hoar in many areas, and on a crust on steep south facing slopes. Previous strong winds have likely formed slabs that may be reactive to human triggers.
There is also a persistent weak layer down approximately 50-60 cm that mainly consists of a crust with sugary faceted snow on top of it. There have been no recent avalanches reported on this layer, but recent test results indicate that this layer could react to human triggers, and propagate widely, resulting in large avalanches.
