In the past 48 hours, 10-30cm of new snow has fallen. This will refresh the skiing but has buried a prominent weak layer and a generally weak snowpack. We suspect it will be reactive in the short term.
Get ready for a cold week ahead.
Dry loose avalanches are expected in steep and gulled terrain as the new snow accumulates over the old faceted surface snow. Ice climbers in particular should be wary of these sluffs in steep terrain.
New snow and moderate to strong winds have created storm slabs at treeline and above. These new surface slabs are expected to bond poorly to the old surface snow.
It is unclear whether this layer will awaken with the new snow load. However, this season's snowpack is very shallow, with weak facets and depth hoar on or near the ground.
Loose-dry avalanches were seen pouring over the Stanley headwall today. Sunshine and Lake Louise saw both natural storm slab and loose dry avalanches to size 2 out of bounds, and some explosive results to size 2. Most were in the storm snow or on the Jan 30th weak layer. No avalanches have yet been observed to step down to the basal layers.
10-30 cm of new snow over the past 48 hours, coupled with winds, have created storm slabs that are bonding poorly to the underlying snow. The layer being buried (Jan 30) is a mix of crust, surface hoar and facets. The snowpack is generally weak, with an old crust and depth hoar at the base.
Expect a couple of cm Saturday night and trace amounts on Sunday. Winds will decrease, and cold air will creep in for the foreseeable future. Temperatures will range from -20 to -30C next week.
