Regions
Northwest Coastal.
Confidence
Fair - Intensity of incoming weather is uncertain on Friday
Weather Forecast
10-15cms of snow accompanied by moderate to strong southwest winds are expected on friday evening. Light snowfall and light to moderate westerly winds are forecast to continue through saturday, but a ridge should develop by sunday bringing clearing conditions to the region through early monday.Freezing levels are expected to sit between 600m and surface for the forecast period.The next system is expected to arrive late monday.
Avalanche Summary
Avalanche activity has tapered off since the large natural glide and wet avalanche cycle earlier in the week. Avalanche activity should pick-up again with friday's forecast weather.
Snowpack Summary
Light amounts of new snow have buried large surface hoar sitting on a 5-20cm thick melt freeze crust that extends into alpine elevation in the south, and around 1000m in the north. A strong temperature gradient in the top 30cm is causing faceting below the surface crust. This surface hoar/crust/facet combination could become particularly touchy once a sufficiently deep and cohesive slab forms. The mid and lower snowpack are generally well settled and strong.Friday night's forecast strong winds and snow is expected to create new storm/windslabs on lee aspects.
Problems
Wind Slabs
Wind Slab avalanches are the release of a cohesive layer of snow (a slab) formed by the wind. Wind typically transports snow from the upwind sides of terrain features and deposits snow on the downwind side. Wind slabs are often smooth and rounded and sometimes sound hollow, and can range from soft to hard. Wind slabs that form over a persistent weak layer (surface hoar, depth hoar, or near-surface facets) may be termed Persistent Slabs or may develop into Persistent Slabs.