In isolated parts of the region, there is enough cohesive new snow to create a reactive storm slab on surface hoar. Investigate locally.
Weather Forecast
A dominant ridge of high pressure brings continued dry weather, a mix of sun and cloud, light northerly winds and cool temperatures. Above about 2000 m, a temperature inversion is expected to raise temps to around -4.For more details check out https://avalanche.ca/weather.
Avalanche Summary
A cycle of naturally-triggered size 1-2 loose dry avalanches was reported on Friday. Most were on steep alpine shady aspects.
Snowpack Summary
5-40 cm recent snow has buried large surface hoar on all aspects at and below treeline and on shaded aspects in the alpine. On south aspects, new snow may be sitting on a sun crust and/or surface hoar, providing an easy sliding layer. The recent snow is mostly unconsolidated and sluffs easily, except where it has been re-distributed by the wind. Fresh wind slabs may be sitting on 10-20 cm of facetted snow. In the mid and southern Purcells, two prominent layers of surface hoar are reactive in snowpack tests. These are buried down 25-50 cm and may have a cohesive slab above. Shallow snowpack areas and moraine features may have weak facetted snow near the ground that will require time and some warming to strengthen.
Problems
Loose Dry
Loose Dry avalanches are the release of dry unconsolidated snow and typically occur within layers of soft snow near the surface of the snowpack. These avalanches start at a point and entrain snow as they move downhill, forming a fan-shaped avalanche. Other names for loose-dry avalanches include point-release avalanches or sluffs.
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.