Winter returns to the high mountains for a few days. There was powder skiing near Bow Summit on Tuesday, and more snow forecast overnight should make for good conditions on Wednesday. Then the weather pattern shifts: clearing in the west, while the east gets hammered with an upslope storm on Thursday. Classic spring in Alberta.
New snow and increasing winds will form wind slabs at upper elevations. This will be predominantly a concern in the northern part of the forecast region, where higher snowfall amounts are expected.
Professional operations are reporting only cornice failures, some with explosives, and none are very big. But cornices can be fragile this time of year.
5 cm of new snow in the past 24 hours overlies sun and temperature crusts on all aspects up to 2300 m. Increasing winds on Tuesday will create some pockets of windslab, but there is not much loose snow to be blown around; thus, slab formation should be minimal. North aspects hold dry, settled snow above 2300 m.
A low-pressure system/cold front crosses our region overnight Tuesday, then exits on Wednesday, leaving behind another 10-15 cm of snow in its wake. Freezing levels may reach the valley bottom.
Following this, the storm pattern will shift with better weather to the west and a significant storm arriving on the eastern side of the mountains. Expect a dump of new snow in the foothills of the Rockies on Thursday.
