Stay away from slopes when surface snow becomes moist or wet with rising temperatures and solar input.
With high temperatures forecast for Sunday and possible solar radiation, surface snow will become moist and lose cohesion. As it does so, there's a good chance it will slide over a crust buried near the surface, especially on convexities and near rocks.
Wet slab avalanches could be triggered on Sunday in places where a recent wind slab problem was present.
No new avalanches observed or reported.
If you are out in the backcountry, please share your observations on the Mountain Information Network (MIN).
Below treeline and possibly up to treeline, a sun crust is present on sun-exposed slopes. In areas sheltered from the wind, between 5 and 30 cm of more or less dense snow can be found on top of a refreezing crust.
In general, west- and north-facing slopes, whether in alpine zones or at treeline, are either bare with exposed rock, or covered with a crust. Snowpack thickness varies between 100 cm and 200 cm.
WEATHER FOR THE CRESTS AND SUMMITS OF CHIC-CHOCS
Saturday evening and night: Becoming cloudy late this evening. Winds south, 40 to 60 km/h. Low -3.
Sunday: Cloudy. Becoming alternately sunny and cloudy in the morning. Wind southwest, 30 to 50 km/h. High +7. No night-time refreezing Sunday night. Freezing level at 3500 m.
Monday: Showers. Accumulation of 5 to 10 mm of rain. Winds 30 to 40 km/h from the southwest. High +7. Temperature cooling during the day. Freezing level at 2500 m.
Tuesday: Rain or snow in the morning. Accumulation of 4 cm possible. Northwest winds, 20-30 km/h. High -5. Freezing level at 750 m.
For more details, see the Chic-Chocs alpine weather forecast.
