Avalanche Forecast

Poor - Timing, track, or intensity of incoming weather system is uncertain

The storm system continues to bring warm, wet conditions to the interior for Wednesday and Thursday. The Purcells region can expect another 5-10mm on Wednesday and 10-15mm for Thursday. Freezing levels on both days are expected to be 2200-2500m. Alpine winds should remain strong but might start to taper off late-Thursday. On a positive note, things should start to change on Friday. Freezing levels should drop, winds should ease, and we may see new snow at higher elevations.

Limited observations on Tuesday includes a report of explosive triggered slabs up to size 1.5 in the Golden area. Also reported was small loose wet activity in the Invermere area.

New moist or wet snowfall sits 10-20cm above a layer of surface hoar. Another 15-20cm below this you may find a hard rain crust. In the Golden area this crust exists up to around 1600m, whereas in the south it is up to 2000m or higher. In total, last week's storm produced slabs up to 1m thick in the north of the region and around 60cm thick in the south. This slab sits on the mid-November weak layer (surface hoar, facets, and/or a crust). Below this you will likely find a 15-20cm thick layer of sugary facets, which is sitting on a solid rain crust from early November. The reactivity of these layers may be slowly diminishing, but they still warrant cautious consideration. Snowpack tests are getting hard pops and drops results, indicating the potential for large propagation and large avalanches.