Avalanche Forecast

Moderate - Due to the number of field observations

Sunday will likely mark the last day of the dry ridge of high pressure. A temperature inversion is still expected with above-freezing temperatures and light ridgetop winds. On Monday and Tuesday, expect cool and unsettled weather with light flurries, moderate southeast winds and freezing levels at or near valley bottom.

One skier accidental size 1.5 avalanche was reported from the north of the region on Thursday. The avalanche was a wind slab on an east aspect at 1200 metres. It was 20-60 cm deep, and released on a buried surface hoar layer from mid-December.

Although recently formed wind slabs have likely gained strength, I'd remain cautious on steep, unsupported slopes in the immediate lee of ridge crests. Solar radiation has also come into play, and depending on the time of day, steep solar aspects may be moist or refrozen. We're still dealing with a thin, early-season snowpack for much of the Northwest Inland region. Shedin creek snow pillow is at historical minimum snow depth, and Tsai creek snow pillow is setting a new historical minimum snow depth. Between 80 and 100 cm of snow can be found at tree-line in the south and west of the region, with closer to 60 cm in the east. A weak basal layer probably exists in most areas, and I suspect that the ongoing cold temperatures have continued to promote faceting in the snowpack, especially in shallow, rocky areas.