Spring skiing is here. Early starts and early finishes are crucial to playing safe! Although supportive in the morning, the upper snowpack is moist and will breakdown quickly with daytime warming.
Weather Forecast
Today sunny with cloudy periods, no precipitation, freeze line rising to 1900m. Tonight clear periods, no precipitation, freeze line falling to 1400m. Mainly cloudy on thursday with no precipitation, and FL rising to 2100m. It will be getting sunny and warmer on the weekend and will be severe clear and hot next week.
Snowpack Summary
Up to 3cm of new snow has fallen on a crust that formed early yesterday evening. This crust is expected to break down during the day today. As the crust breaks down and melts avalanche hazard will increase.
Avalanche Summary
We have been experiencing regular natural avalanche cycles in the afternoon with daytime warming and the strong effects of the sun. Avalanches have been in the sz 1.5 - 2.5 range and either loose wet or wet slab releases. Sporadic glide crack releases to sz 3 have been recorded recently. No new avalanches have been recorded in the last 24 hours.
Problems
Loose Wet
Loose Wet avalanches are the release of wet unconsolidated snow or slush. These avalanches typically occur within layers of wet snow near the surface of the snowpack, but they may quickly gouge into lower snowpack layers. Like Loose Dry Avalanches, they start at a point and entrain snow as they move downhill, forming a fan-shaped avalanche. Other names for loose-wet avalanches include point-release avalanches or sluffs. Loose Wet avalanches can trigger slab avalanches that break into deeper snow layers.
Wet Slabs
Wet Slab avalanches are the release of a cohesive layer of snow (a slab) that is generally moist or wet when the flow of liquid water weakens the bond between the slab and the surface below (snow or ground). They often occur during prolonged warming events and/or rain-on-snow events. Wet Slabs can be very unpredictable and destructive.
Cornices
Cornice Fall is the release of an overhanging mass of snow that forms as the wind moves snow over a sharp terrain feature, such as a ridge, and deposits snow on the downwind (leeward) side. Cornices range in size from small wind drifts of soft snow to large overhangs of hard snow that are 30 feet (10 meters) or taller. They can break off the terrain suddenly and pull back onto the ridge top and catch people by surprise even on the flat ground above the slope. Even small cornices can have enough mass to be destructive and deadly. Cornice Fall can entrain loose surface snow or trigger slab avalanches.