Confidence
Fair - Due to limited field observations for the entire period
Weather Forecast
Wednesday: A cold front traveling across the province will bring light precipitation. Freezing levels 1600m and moderate westerly winds are expected.Thursday: A lull between weather systems will mostly overcast skies with sunny breaks. Some light precipitation is possible. Freezing levels 1600m and strong northwesterly winds.Friday: Another pacific frontal system affects the southeast with some precipitation, but not until later in the day.
Avalanche Summary
Loose moist snow in motion released a wet slab on a North aspect of Mt. Hosmer. Loose wet or moist snow is expected to continue to release naturally from steep terrain or rocky areas at lower elevations.
Snowpack Summary
Overnight freezing has consolidated previously loose wet snow at treeline and above. Some new wind slabs may have developed during periods of strong easterly winds combined with new snow. The surface crust is expected to break down during the day and then re-freeze tonight. Moist or wet snow below treeline is not expected to have much of a recovery and may continue to be isothermal and weak.
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.
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.