Assess your line for wind slab before committing, slabs may be small but reactive.
Buried layers may be reactive in shallow snowpacks, shift to simple terrain at signs of instability.
Slabs will be most reactive where they overly weak surfaces: a crust on south facing slopes, or facets and surface hoar on sheltered north facing slopes. Expect locally variable wind effect throughout the region.
Avalanche activity was last reported Saturday, with wind slabs to size 1.5 rider-triggered on south-facing slopes. Photos below.
Recent reports indicate snowpack variability exists throughout the region. A remotely triggered size 1.5 slab was reported on an east aspect at Nadahinni, likely occurring on Wednesday. And signs of instability were observed near Fraser Peak on Sunday. Choose conservative terrain in areas where the snowpack is shallow.
Exposed terrain holds variable, wind-affected surfaces, while soft snow remains in sheltered areas. Due to variable winds, wind slabs may be present on multiple aspects.
Reports indicate that eastern White Pass and terrain south of Fraser Peak have a shallower, weaker snowpack.
A buried layer of surface hoar or a hard crust, 30 to 50 cm deep, has produced recent cracking, whumpfs, and remains reactive in tests. Read this MIN for more.
A December crust with facets sits 100 to 150 cm deep on all aspects up to 1750 m. This layer has not shown recent activity or significant test results.
Snow depth ranges from 100 cm at highway elevations to over 300 cm in the alpine.
Monday Night
Mostly cloudy with flurries. 50 to 70 km/h southwest wind. Treeline temperature -10 °C.
Tuesday
Cloudy with up to 3 cm of snow. 40 to 50 km/h southwest wind. Treeline temperature -6 °C.
Wednesday
Cloudy with 5 to 10 cm of snow. 40 to 50 km/h southeast wind. Treeline temperature -4 °C.
Thursday
Partly cloudy. 10 to 30 km/h southerly wind. Treeline temperature -4 °C.
More details can be found in the Mountain Weather Forecast.
