Be very cautious when travelling in wind-affected terrain, as touchy wind slabs exist.
Snowfall and continual strong south to southwest wind has formed touchy wind slabs in lee terrain features. In areas sheltered from the wind, you may also find storm slabs that have developed, so assess for slab properties prior to jumping into consequential terrain features.
SUNDAY NIGHT: Cloudy with snowfall, accumulation 10 to 15 cm, 60 km/h south wind, alpine temperature -4 C.
MONDAY: Cloudy with snowfall, accumulation 2 to 5 cm, 50 km/h southwest wind, alpine temperature -6 C.
TUESDAY: Mostly cloudy with snowfall, accumulation 5 cm, 50 km/h southwest wind, alpine temperature -4 C.
WEDNESDAY: Cloudy with snow and rain, accumulation 5 to 10 cm snow above 1200 m and rain below, 60 km/h south wind, alpine temperature -1 C, freezing level 1200 m.
Reports suggest that large avalanches reached the Klondike highway on Saturday, likely occurring naturally from strong wind loading. This MIN also describes a couple skier-triggered wind slab avalanches in the Wheaton.
Looking forward, similar natural and skier-triggered wind slab avalanches are expected as stormy conditions continue.
Strong to extreme south to southwest wind has blown any recent snow into touchy wind slabs in lee terrain features. The slabs may be widely variable in thickness, anywhere from 20 to upwards of 100 cm thick. Reports suggest the slabs may have a poor bond with underlying surfaces, including previous hard wind slabs and potentially surface hoar crystals in sheltered and shaded aspects. It is possible that recent snow has formed storm slabs in the most sheltered of terrain that has avoided these winds.
In shallow snowpack areas, a layer of loose facets can be found at the bottom of the snowpack.
