Avalanche Forecast

Low

No recent avalanches have been reported. We are coming out of a long period of warm, dry conditions, and low avalanche danger. Now, with significant new snow and wind in the forecast, we anticipate avalanche activity will be likely on Friday.

New snow is accumulating. By late Friday afternoon, storm totals are expected to reach 35 cm in the western parts of the region, accompanied by moderate southwesterly winds at ridgetops. The eastern parts of the region may see far less, with totals around 10 to 15 cm. In these areas, the avalanche danger will be lower.

The new snow is falling on a hard crust, facets or surface hoar, and is expected to build reactive storm slabs. Our biggest concern will be how quickly the new snow will bond - we expect it to take several days or longer. Otherwise, the mid and lower snowpack remains dense, well-settled, and free of concerning layers.

Thursday Night

Cloudy with 2 to 10 cm of snow - Highest amounts forecast for the western parts of the region. 20 to 30 km/h southwest ridgetop wind. Treeline temperature -8 °C.

Friday

Cloudy with 5 to 25 cm of snow - Highest amounts forecast for the western parts of the region. 25 to 35 km/h southwest ridgetop wind. Treeline temperatures -4 °C.

Saturday

Cloudy with 1 to 5 cm of snow. 15 to 25 km/h southwest ridgetop wind. Treeline temperature -13 °C.

Sunday

Cloudy with 0 to 3 cm of snow. 10 to 15 km/h variable ridgetop wind. Treeline temperatures -15 °C.

More details can be found in the Mountain Weather Forecast.

• Avoid avalanche terrain during periods of heavy snowfall.
• Storm slab size and sensitivity to triggering will likely increase through the day.
• As the storm slab problem worsens, the easy solution is to choose more conservative terrain.