Regions
Kootenay Boundary.
Continue to observe for signs of the weak layer buried in the snowpack. A cooling trend may make it harder to trigger, but it is still possible.
Weather Forecast
SATURDAY NIGHT: Cloudy, freezing level dropping to 500 m with inversion conditions possible.SUNDAY: Clearing over the day, moderate northwest winds, alpine temperature -5 C, freezing level 1200 m.MONDAY: Mix of sun and clouds, light west winds, alpine temperature -8 C, freezing level below valley bottom.TUESDAY: Mostly clear skies, light northwest winds, alpine temperature -6 C, freezing level below valley bottom.
Avalanche Summary
No new avalanches were observed on Friday.
Snowpack Summary
The upper snowpack consists of a variety of crusts and weak layers. On the snow surface, you will likely find a sun crust on south aspects but still dry snow on northerly aspects. Buried around 10 to 20 cm, a widespread crust should be found. At a depth of around 20 to 40 cm, expect to find yet another crust on south aspects and feathery surface hoar crystals in sheltered and shaded areas. The surface hoar may be most pronounced at treeline elevations.The remainder of the snowpack is generally reported as well-settled.
Problems
Persistent Slabs
Persistent Slab avalanches are the release of a cohesive layer of snow (a slab) in the middle to upper snowpack, when the bond to an underlying persistent weak layer breaks. Persistent layers include: surface hoar, depth hoar, near-surface facets, or faceted snow. Persistent weak layers can continue to produce avalanches for days, weeks or even months, making them especially dangerous and tricky. As additional snow and wind events build a thicker slab on top of the persistent weak layer, this avalanche problem may develop into a Deep Persistent Slab.