Regions
South Coast Inland.
Continue to observe for signs of the lingering weak layer buried in our snowpack and affected snow from recent wind transportation.
Weather Forecast
SUNDAY NIGHT: Clear skies, freezing level below valley bottom.MONDAY: Mix of sun and clouds, light northwest winds, alpine temperature -2 C, freezing level below valley bottom.TUESDAY: Mix of sun and clouds, light northwest winds, alpine temperature 1 C, above freezing layer possible, with inversion conditions.WEDNESDAY: Mix of sun and clouds, light west winds, alpine temperature 0 C, above freezing layer possible, with inversion conditions.
Avalanche Summary
Loose wet avalanches were observed on steep southerly terrain features on Saturday and Sunday.
Snowpack Summary
On the snow surface, you will likely find a melt-freeze crust on southerly aspects to the top of the mountain and wind affected snow in the alpine. Wind deposits may exist in lee terrain features due to recent west winds.Around 30 to 50 cm of snow sits on a melt-freeze crust on southerly aspects, a crust below around 1700 m on all aspects, and feathery surface hoar in areas sheltered by the wind at all elevation bands. The surface hoar may be most pronounced on west, north, and east aspects between 1700 m and 2000 m.Below this, the snowpack is generally well-settled.
Problems
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.