We could see rain to the summits on Friday followed by drier and cooler conditions on the weekend. Certainly not ideal for snow quality!
Summary
Confidence
Good
Weather Forecast
Friday: Cloudy with periods of rain 10-15 mm. The freezing level is around 2500-2700 m. Ridge winds are moderate from the southwest. Saturday: A mix of sun and cloud. The freezing level is around 1700-2000 m. Ridge winds are light gusting to moderate. Sunday: A mix of sun and cloud. The freezing level is around 1600-1800 m. Winds remain light but gusty.
Avalanche Summary
Avalanche activity appears to have tapered off for now although small lose wet avalanches have been reported in steep terrain.
Snowpack Summary
It's definitely not your typical early February coastal snowpack. At upper elevations continued warm temperatures are encouraging the settlement of recent storm snow. The supportive crust that formed up to 2100m in February can now be found down about 70 to 100cm in the alpine. Snow pack tests on both the mid-storm instabilities and the crust are showing that these layers are gaining strengthen. Moist snow has been reported bellow 2200m and a slush on crust setup makes for difficult riding conditions below treeline. Cornices are reported to be looming threateningly at ridgeline.
Problems
Wet Slabs
Rain is expected to ridge tops on Friday. This could trigger wet slabs, particularly in higher terrain where most of the recent precipitation fell as snow and sits on a melt-freeze crust.
Give cornices a wide berth when travelling on or below ridges.>Avoid avalanche terrain during periods of rain.>
Aspects: All aspects.
Elevations: Alpine, Treeline.
Likelihood
Expected Size
Loose Wet
Loose wet activity remains possible in steep open terrain and gullies.
Be very cautious with gully features.>Avoid exposure to terrain traps where the consequences of a small avalanche could be serious.>
Aspects: All aspects.
Elevations: Alpine, Treeline.
Likelihood
Expected Size
Valid until: Feb 13th, 2015 2:00PM
