Evaluate the snow and terrain carefully as there is still limited information from this region. Wind slabs likely exist at higher elevations and buried crusts could produce big avalanches.
Confidence
Moderate - The weather pattern is stable
Weather Forecast
MONDAY: Light flurries, moderate to strong northwest wind, alpine temperatures around -10 C.TUESDAY: Cloudy, moderate northwest wind, alpine temperatures warming to -5 C.WEDNESDAY: Sunny, light wind, inversion forming with alpine temperatures above 0 C.
Avalanche Summary
On Saturday, riders in the Valemount and Blue River areas did not report any notable avalanches, but some small natural loose dry avalanches were observed in steep lee terrain.Please continue to submit your observations to the Mountain Information Network (MIN).
Snowpack Summary
Cold weather has maintained the low density snow from last week's storms, with the exception of wind affected terrain at higher elevations. Fresh snow amounts vary throughout the region with roughly 20 cm in the north and up to 60 cm in the southeast of the region near Blue River. Below the recent storm snow you may find crusts that formed during the rain events in late November. Little is known about depth, distribution, or reactivity of these crusts. Snow depths decrease rapidly below treeline, where the primary hazards are rocks, stumps, and open creeks.
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.
Persistent Slabs
Persistent Slab avalanches are the release of a cohesive layer of snow (a slab) in the middle to upper snowpack, when the bond to an underlying persistent weak layer breaks. Persistent layers include: surface hoar, depth hoar, near-surface facets, or faceted snow. Persistent weak layers can continue to produce avalanches for days, weeks or even months, making them especially dangerous and tricky. As additional snow and wind events build a thicker slab on top of the persistent weak layer, this avalanche problem may develop into a Deep Persistent Slab.