Lizard-Flathead

Wind slabs at upper elevations are the main concern.

On Monday there were reports of a few skier controlled wind slab avalanches to size 1. On Monday there were a few size 1-1.5 explosives controlled wind slab avalanches reported in the alpine and treeline.

Recent southwest winds have redistributed surface snow into leeward terrain features. In some areas, you may also find a thin, frozen crust near the surface.

The dry surface snow has bonded well to the crust left behind by last week's rain event. That crust is 40-60 cm deep and has been observed up to 5 cm thick in some places.

Beneath the upper crust, the remainder of the rain-moistened snowpack has slowly refrozen.

Snowpack depths vary across the forecast area. 50 to 120 cm at treeline, tapering rapidly below treeline.

Wednesday Night

Mainly cloudy with isolated flurries, accumulation 1-2 cm. Moderate west ridgetop wind. Treeline temperature around -9 °C.

Thursday

Mostly cloudy with flurries, accumulation 1-4 cm. Moderate to strong southwest ridgetop wind. Treeline temperature around -5°C.

Mainly cloudy with clear periods. Light to moderate southwest ridgetop wind. Treeline temperature -4°C.

Mix of sun and cloud. Moderate southwest wind. Treeline temperature -5°C.

More details can be found in the Mountain Weather Forecast.

• Be careful with wind slabs, especially in steep, unsupported and/or convex terrain features.
• Early season avalanches at any elevation have the potential to be particularly dangerous due to obstacles that are exposed or just below the surface.