Expect wind slabs on a range of aspects as the wind shifts direction this week.
Confidence
Moderate - Due to the number of field observations
Weather Forecast
MONDAY: Mix of sun and cloud, moderate northwest wind, alpine temperatures around -12 C.TUESDAY: Mostly sunny, light wind, alpine temperatures warming to -7 C.WEDNESDAY: Sunny, light wind, inversion forming with alpine temperatures possibly reaching above 0 C.
Avalanche Summary
Avalanche reports over the weekend were limited to size 1 wind slabs triggered by explosives near ridge crests. There are no recent reports of natural or human triggered avalanches, but observations are limited. Please continue to submit your observations to the Mountain Information Network (MIN).
Snowpack Summary
Snow from last week's storms is settling and getting redistributed by westerly winds. Roughly 20-40 cm of recent snow sits above various crusts from the warm weather in late November. Two deeper layers may be found in the snowpack, including the November 10 surface hoar and the Halloween crust (80 to 100 cm deep). The late November crust is the most likely of these layers to develop into a problem in the near future. 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.