Avalanche Forecast

We’re entering a rather quiet period with no significant snow expected until Monday afternoon. The next 48 hours are marked by seasonally normal temps, potentially sunny periods and a bit of northwest wind at ridgetop.

SATURDAY NIGHT: Freezing level at valley bottom, moderate northwest wind largely confined to the high peaks, no significant precipitation expected.

SUNDAY: Broken cloud cover, freezing level at valley bottom, light west/northwest wind at most elevations with moderate to strong northwest wind at ridgetop, no significant precipitation expected.

MONDAY: Broken cloud cover, freezing level at valley bottom, moderate west/southwest wind, snow beginning late in the day, potential for 5 to 15 cm by Tuesday morning.

TUESDAY: Overcast, freezing level beginning at valley bottom rising to 1400 m by sundown, strong southerly wind, 2 to 10 cm expected during the day, 5 to 15 more cm possible Tuesday night.

No new avalanche activity to report from Friday.

Reports from Thursday included sloughing and loose dry size 1 avalanches in the storm snow, as well as a persistent slab avalanche triggered remotely by a helicopter. It is important to keep in mind the potential for large, persistent slab avalanches.

A total depth of 150-300 cm of snow sits in the alpine in central parts of the region. 15-30 cm of new snow has covered a layer of feathery surface hoar crystals that were observed at all elevations throughout the region. The new snow can be expected to gain cohesion and settle into a slab in the mild temperatures, especially at treeline and below.

The primary layers of concern at this time are a couple of weak layers in the mid snowpack, formed in late November and early December which can be found most notably at treeline, and may present as surface hoar, a crust, facets or a combination, depending on elevation and aspect. These types of weak layers are typical failure planes, on which overlying slabs can start to slide and produce avalanches.