Regions
Northwest Inland.
This bulletin is based on limited amounts of information. Spring conditions mean you should anticipate a daily cycle of loose snow avalanches on south-facing slopes.
Confidence
Fair - Due to limited field observations
Weather Forecast
Tuesday should remain dry with cloud increasing through the day. Freezing levels should hover around 1600 m, winds are expected to be moderate southeasterly. On Wednesday, expect light precipitation with only minimal accumulation. On Thursday, moderate precipitation is expected, with amounts in the 10-15 mm range. Winds should ease to light and freezing levels should drop slightly to around 1400 m.
Avalanche Summary
The last observation from this region was a cornice release on Saturday 7th that pulled a size 1.5 slab on a northeast aspect at lower alpine elevation. Based on observations from the Northwest Coastal region, I would expect loose snow avalanches have been occurring up to size 2 on solar aspects.
Snowpack Summary
We have had very little information about the snowpack in this region for several days now. However, I suspect the warmer temperatures and generally light winds have consolidated the snowpack in many areas. Anticipate extensive crusts on solar aspects and moist snow at lower elevations. On shady aspects, I suspect you can still find pockets of dry snow, which may sit over previous old wind slabs. Wet slabs become a possibility during periods of prolonged warming, especially if there is minimal amounts of overnight freeze.
Problems
Loose Wet
Loose Wet avalanches are the release of wet unconsolidated snow or slush. These avalanches typically occur within layers of wet snow near the surface of the snowpack, but they may quickly gouge into lower snowpack layers. Like Loose Dry Avalanches, they start at a point and entrain snow as they move downhill, forming a fan-shaped avalanche. Other names for loose-wet avalanches include point-release avalanches or sluffs. Loose Wet avalanches can trigger slab avalanches that break into deeper snow layers.
Cornices
Cornice Fall is the release of an overhanging mass of snow that forms as the wind moves snow over a sharp terrain feature, such as a ridge, and deposits snow on the downwind (leeward) side. Cornices range in size from small wind drifts of soft snow to large overhangs of hard snow that are 30 feet (10 meters) or taller. They can break off the terrain suddenly and pull back onto the ridge top and catch people by surprise even on the flat ground above the slope. Even small cornices can have enough mass to be destructive and deadly. Cornice Fall can entrain loose surface snow or trigger slab avalanches.