Avalanche season is here! With exposed boulders, trees, and stumps at the bottom of slopes, these could pile you into a horrible mess. Ouch!
Weather Forecast
Increasing cloud cover today, with 10-15cm of snow arriving Tuesday night / Wednesday morning. Winds will remain light to moderate today, increasing to moderate/strong with the incoming snow. Freezing levels should remain below 1000m through Wednesday.
Snowpack Summary
The weekend storm snow has nearly doubled the snowpack depths at most elevations. The shallow snowpack is adjusting to this heavy, warm load and is settling. Moderate to strong SW winds have created wind slabs in lee areas. Many rocks, stumps, and trees are still poking through the surface, so early season hazards still prevail.
Avalanche Summary
On Sunday, a skier-triggered size 3.5 along Bruins Ridge caught two people. Partial burial of those involved. Dimensions were 50-100cm deep, 500m wide, and 1000+m in length. The slide covered part of the Video Pk uptrack. Several smaller size 1-2.5 slides reported on either side of Balu Pass. Natural activity has slowed since Sunday night.
Confidence
Due to the number of field observations
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.
Loose Dry
Loose Dry avalanches are the release of dry unconsolidated snow and typically occur within layers of soft snow near the surface of the snowpack. These avalanches start at a point and entrain snow as they move downhill, forming a fan-shaped avalanche. Other names for loose-dry avalanches include point-release avalanches or sluffs.