Older Storm Slabs linger and new ones will form today. Significant precipitation over the past few days means finding a Storm Slab is possible at any aspect or elevation. Pay attention to the depth of the new snow and the angle of the slope, where it is steep and deep you could find a slab.
Since Sunday the 26th, 1-3" of water has fallen from the sky. Despite high snow levels, it seems that much of this water fell as snow. In some locations that means significant amounts of new snow have accumulated. Choosing lower-angle slopes with shallow snow accumulations is an excellent way to avoid Storm Slabs.
The Deep Persistent Slab problem just received a significant test. While observations are very limited, no avalanches have been reported to have failed on the weak November snow in the last storm cycle. While this layer does seem to be becoming less reactive, it does still exist and is stubbornly reactive in some stability tests. This sugary weak snow is now buried 3-5' deep. This creates a low likelihood, high consequence scenario. Triggering one of these avalanches would be most likely in a shallow rocky area on an NW-E aspect.
Yesterday was a brief lull between storms. This lull offered the opportunity for folks to get out and take a look around. Overall, it seems that the rain/ice/snow storm that began Christmas weekend did less damage than expected. New snow accumulations were substantial in some areas and surface conditions were generally good. Many new density changes and crust layers exist. Buried Surface Hoar was found in the Western Wallowas. A large Storm Slab avalanche was observed in the Southern Wallowas (see picture below). No other avalanches were reported.
With a large storm just ending and another one beginning today, caution is warranted. Please let us know what you observed after the Christmas storm and what you are seeing in the coming weather event.
