Natural avalanches unlikely, human triggered possible.
Treeline
Natural avalanches unlikely, human triggered possible.
Below Treeline
Natural avalanches unlikely.
Alpine
Natural avalanches unlikely, human triggered possible.
Treeline
Natural avalanches unlikely, human triggered possible.
Below Treeline
Natural avalanches unlikely.
Alpine
Natural avalanches possible, human triggered probable.
Treeline
Natural avalanches unlikely, human triggered possible.
Below Treeline
Natural avalanches unlikely.
Regions
South Coast.
Sunday should see a brief lull in the weather before we're hit by an onslaught of strong weather systems next week.
Confidence
Poor - Due to the number of field observations
Weather Forecast
Sunday: Cloudy with sunny breaks and a chance of showers or flurries later in the day. Freezing levels are near 1200 m, but a deep above freezing layer could form essentially driving freezing levels over 2000 m. Winds may rise to strong from the south late in the day. Monday: Cloudy with showers or snow. The freezing level is around 1800-2000 m and winds are strong from the S-SW. Tuesday: Periods of rain – heavy at times. The freezing level is around 2200-2400 m and winds are very strong from the south.
Avalanche Summary
No new reports of avalanches. Please let us know what you're seeing out there at [email protected].
Snowpack Summary
Around 10-15 cm of moist new snow now covers the previous variable snow surface that consisted of facets (dry sugary snow) and surface hoar in sheltered areas, or pockets of old wind slab and an ice crust in open wind-exposed terrain (depending on aspect). Fresh new wind slabs may have formed in open north and east facing slopes, especially below ridges and behind terrain features in the alpine. There are probably a couple notable crusts in the upper to mid snowpack. The deeper crust may be associated with a weak layer of facetted snow, but may be limited to slopes above treeline. There's limited recent info on this weakness so I recommend digging to confirm the existence of the layer, its depth, and strength. Snow pack depth and snow quality drastically diminishes as you drop below treeline.
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.