Avalanche Forecast

Observations were limited today, but small sluffs were observed in the Alpine in extreme terrain due to the on going strong winds.

Recent snow accumulations of up to 15cm is being re-distributed by strong and variable winds at ridgetop. Expect wind slabs averaging 30cm thick on virtually all aspects in the Alpine terrain, and these do extend down into Treeline elevations in some areas. The reactivity of these wind slabs depends on the previous surface they have formed on. In areas where a buried crust exists, or a layer of weak facets, these new wind slabs will be more touchy. At Treeline and below the early December rain crust remains supportive for the most part. Unfortunately the incoming cold snap may start to change that. Otherwise the basal facets and depth hoar remain unchanged.

Tuesday will be relatively seasonal and then its going to get ugly!

Tuesday will be overcast with scattered flurries and accumulations between 1 and 5cm (although some models say up to 15cm). Winds will be strong to extreme from the SW in the morning, and then decrease in the afternoon. Temperatures should reach -8C.

Then the deep freeze begins. Wednesday will see temps drop through the day into the -25 range, and then as cold as -38 on Thursday morning. Ugh.

More details can be found in the Mountain Weather Forecast.

• Recent wind has varied in direction so watch for wind slabs on all aspects.
• Be carefull around freshly wind loaded features.
• Watch for newly formed and reactive wind slabs as you transition into wind affected terrain.
• In areas where deep persistent slabs may exist, avoid shallow or variable depth snowpacks and unsupported terrain features.