Forecast snowfall amounts are uncertain for Saturday night. Pay close attention to how much snow fell in your area, and choose terrain accordingly.
Summary
Confidence
Moderate - Forecast snowfall amounts are uncertain on Saturday
Weather Forecast
On Sunday, expect up to 10cm of new snow and strong southwest winds. A gradual clearing trend is forecast for Monday and Tuesday as a dry ridge of high pressure develops over the region. Winds associated with the ridge should be generally light and northeasterly. Freezing levels are expected to hover around valley bottom for all 3 days.
Avalanche Summary
A round of wind slab avalanche activity is expected in response to new snow and wind on Saturday night. Cornices may also continue to grow, increasing their likelihood of failure.
Snowpack Summary
By Sunday afternoon the region can expect to see up to 20cm of new snow. Forecast strong southwest winds will have redistributed much of that snow into new wind slabs in exposed lee terrain. In the upper 70cm of the snowpack you may find a layer of weak surface hoar which was the culprit with a recent avalanche on an east aspect at treeline in the Fitzsimmons Range. Although not much is known about its distribution, this layer may be something to watch as the overlying slab gets deeper and gains cohesion through storm loading and wind pressing.The mid and lower snowpack are generally considered to be strong and well-settled.
jlammers,
Avalanche Canada
