Summary
Confidence
Fair - Forecast snowfall amounts are uncertain on Saturday
Weather Forecast
Saturday: Light to locally moderate snowfall. Winds light southwest. Freezing level 1600mSunday: Light snowfall. Light southwest winds. Freezing level 1500m.Monday: Isolated flurries with some sunny breaks. Freezing level 1400m. Winds light west.
Avalanche Summary
Recent avalanche activity has been reported as loose dry and moist avalanches running to size 1.5 in steep terrain.
Snowpack Summary
New snow accumulations from the past week have settled out and become moist on the surface up to 2000m on all aspects. There is now 55 - 80cm of new snow on top of the March 10th crust. This crust is widespread to 2000m across the region, perhaps even higher on solar aspects. There are reports of the crust being as thick as 15cm in the south of the region, however there seems to be variability in how thick and supportive it is. As you head north in the region where the mountains are higher (temperatures were colder when the crust was forming) this crust is less likely to exist. If you are heading to the north of the region make sure you check out the South Columbia bulletin also.A facet/crust persistent weakness buried at the beginning of February, now down 70 - 200cm, has been highly variable in terms of reactivity but still shows 'sudden' results in some snowpack tests. In areas where the strong and supportive crust exists, triggering this layer has become unlikely. That said, any avalanches triggered on this deep persistent layer would be large and destructive.
mbender,
Avalanche Canada
