Good weather for backcountry travel, but stay alert to variable avalanche conditions.
Confidence
Fair - Due to the number of field observations
Weather Forecast
Cold and dry with light to moderate N-NE outflow winds. A temperature inversion may form on Tuesday/Wednesday.
Avalanche Summary
On Friday a few size 1-1.5 wind slabs failed in steep terrain. On Wednesday, a snowboarder triggered a size 2-2.5 slab on a north aspect at 1900 m in the Callahan area. The crown was 10cm-100cm deep. The slab is believed to have failed on a crust. The snowboarder was buried, but was recovered safely by companion rescue.
Snowpack Summary
10-20 cm recent snow is expected to be shifted into wind slabs on lee terrain features. The recent snow overlies variable surfaces including large surface hoar crystals, old wind slabs and wind-scoured surfaces. A deeper layer of surface hoar buried in mid-December (now down 40-70cm) has been gradually gaining strength, but may still be a concern in some areas. The mid and lower snowpack contain several old crust layers, one of which may have been the failure layer for a recent burial (see avalanche summary).
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.