Regions
Northwest Inland.
The region isn't expected to get much snow over the next couple of days, but watch for fresh wind slab formation in the alpine.
Confidence
Fair - Intensity of incoming weather systems is uncertain on Sunday
Weather Forecast
Expect 5-10 mm of precipitation overnight Thursday, and freezing levels dropping to 1200 m by Friday morning. Isolated light snow flurries are expected to continue for Friday with moderate westerly winds. Saturday morning is expected to be unsettled before another weakened system in the afternoon, with freezing levels remaining around 1200 m. Expect another 2-5 cm by Sunday morning falling under strong southwesterly winds, and additional light amounts on Sunday with freezing levels remaining around 1200 m.
Avalanche Summary
A few small wind slab avalanches were reported from alpine features Tuesday. Reports from Wednesday include numerous wet loose avalanches reaching Size 2 on steep rocky slopes.
Snowpack Summary
Up to 25 cm of recent wet snow is sloughing readily in steep terrain. Weaknesses buried in the upper snowpack may include hard crusts and/or facet crystals, although not much is known about the reactivity or spatial distribution of these layers. At the base of the snowpack, weak facets may be found. Cornices are large and potentially fragile. Unpredictable, full-depth glide avalanches are also a concern on low elevation slopes with smooth ground cover (grassy slopes, rock slabs, etc.) where large cracks have formed from the snowpack slipping on the ground.
Problems
Storm Slabs
Storm Slab avalanches are the release of a cohesive layer (a slab) of new snow that breaks within new snow or on the old snow surface. Storm-slabs typically last between a few hours and few days (following snowfall). Storm-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.
Loose Wet
Loose Wet avalanches are the release of wet unconsolidated snow or slush. These avalanches typically occur within layers of wet snow near the surface of the snowpack, but they may quickly gouge into lower snowpack layers. Like Loose Dry Avalanches, they start at a point and entrain snow as they move downhill, forming a fan-shaped avalanche. Other names for loose-wet avalanches include point-release avalanches or sluffs. Loose Wet avalanches can trigger slab avalanches that break into deeper snow layers.