Watch out on solar aspects if prolonged sun occurs. Breakable crusts on many aspects up into the alpine with not enough new snow required for a refresh. Cold dry snow may be found on high elevation northerly aspects.
Weather Forecast
Cloudy with sunny periods and an alpine high of -4C with light ridge winds.
Snowpack Summary
7cm of snow now buries a melt freeze crust on solar aspects into the alpine and surface hoar in protected areas. Cold dry snow may be found on high northerly aspects. The seasons snow is well settled. Surface layers may slough with daytime warming.
Avalanche Summary
Cloudy skies and cooler temperatures yesterday limited natural avalanche activity. Numerous loose wet avalanches occurred with the sun on Wednesday on steep solar aspects to sz 2.5 due to the warm temps, periods of sun and a high freezing level. If the sun comes out today expect surface layer to become active.
Confidence
Timing or intensity of solar radiation is uncertain
Problems
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.