Avalanche Forecast

Moderate - Uncertainty is due to rapidly fluctuating freezing levels.

Tuesday night: Heavy rain; 30-40mm. Strong to extreme south or southwest winds.

Wednesday: Heavy rain; 40 mm accumulation. Strong south or southwest winds. Treeline high temperatures around +4.

Thursday: Mainly sunny. Light variable winds. Treeline temperatures of -1 to -4, dropping over the day.

Friday: Mainly sunny, clouding over in the afternoon. Light variable winds. Treeline high temperatures around -1.

Wednesday's forecast suggests we may see another day of rapidly evolving avalanche conditions. If daytime freezing levels fall low enough we could see substantial storm slabs form in the region's upper elevations before the end of the day, particularly in alpine areas. A rapid transition from active wet loose avalanche conditions to a touchier new storm slab problem should be on your mind as new snow begins to accumulate.

Heavy rain has affected the snowpack at all elevations. Significant new snow (15-30 cm) may accumulate at high elevations during the final hours of the storm on Wednesday. This could set up a scenario where unstable new storm slabs become a serious concern before the end of the day.

Average treeline snow depths are around 80-100 cm with much of treeline and all but the uppermost below treeline elevations still below threshold depths for avalanches.

• As surface loses cohesion due to melting, loose wet avalanches become common in steeper terrain.
• Keep in mind that wet avalanches can be destructive due to their high density.
• Dial back your terrain choices if you are seeing more than 20 cm of new snow.