Very dangerous avalanche conditions exist at all elevations. Avoid all avalanche terrain.
Widespread natural avalanche activity is expected with heavy snowfall and strong winds.
A weak layer of facets or surface hoar above a thick crust persists in the snowpack. If triggered storm slab avalanches may step down to this layer resulting in very large, destructive avalanches.
As snow accumulates through the day watch for storm snow becoming a cohesive slab and increasingly reactive to triggers. Deeper deposits are expected in north and east facing terrain around ridgelines.
On Monday, numerous skier remotely triggered persistent slab avalanches were reported up to size 2 in the region. These avalanches occurred mainly on north and easterly aspects between 1600 and 2000 m. A few remotely triggered windslab avalanches were also reported up to size 1 on north and south aspects at 1600 m.
Operators in the region also reported evidence of numerous natural, size 3, persistent slab avalanches that likely released during the previous storm.
Storm snow accumulates over wind-affected surfaces and old wind slabs in exposed areas at all elevations.
Multiple weak layers exist in the upper and mid snowpack. The most concerning weak layer is found down 30 to 100 cm and is composed of a layer of facets or in isolated areas preserved surface hoar above a thick crust. This layer is the culprit of recent remotely-triggered avalanches in low-angle terrain. Professionals are concerned about how this layer will react to the new snow load.
Tuesday Night
Cloudy with 10 to 20 cm of snow. 25 to 40 km/h southwest ridgetop wind. Treeline temperature -13 °C. Freezing levels remain at valley bottom.
Wednesday
Cloudy with 20 to 40 cm of snow. 30 to 50 km/h southwest ridgetop wind. Treeline temperature rises to -6 °C. Freezing level rises to 1200 m throughout the day.
Thursday
Mainly cloudy with 1 to 2 cm of snow. 20 to 30 km/h southwest ridgetop wind. Treeline temperature rises to -8 °C. Freezing level hovers around 800 m.
Friday
Mainly cloudy with 2 to 8 cm of snow. 30 to 50 km/h south ridgetop wind. Treeline temperature rises to -8 °C. Freezing level hovers around 800 m.
More details can be found in the Mountain Weather Forecast.
