Avalanche Forecast

Throughout Sunday we can expect a clearing trend with freezing levels eventually falling to valley bottom. Extreme westerly winds are also expected to shift to moderate and northwesterly as a dry arctic ridge develops for Monday and Tuesday.

A natural avalanche cycle is expected to occur in response to new snow and wind on Saturday. On Sunday, natural avalanche activity is expected to taper-off with forecast cooling and clearing. That said, the newly formed storm slab may remain ripe for human triggering for the next few days.

Deep and destructive storm slabs are expected to form as a result of Saturday's storm, especially in the north of the region where total accumulations are expected to be the highest. The reactivity of these new storm slabs will likely change with elevation and underlying snowpack structure. Due to limited observations, I have very little confidence in what that underlying structure may be, although faceting and surface hoar development have been reported on shaded terrain. If you've been in the mountains, please share your observations on our Mountain Information Network.