Light snowfall over the next few days with a potentially bigger storm by the weekend, stay tuned...
Confidence
High - on Thursday
Weather Forecast
WEDNESDAY NIGHT: Mostly cloudy, light south wind, alpine temperatures drop to -10 C.THURSDAY: Scattered flurries with 5-10 cm of snow, light southeast wind, alpine high temperatures around -8 C. FRIDAY: Another 5 cm of snow, light southwest wind, alpine high temperatures around -4 C. SATURDAY: 5-15 cm of snow, strong southwest wind, freezing level climbing to 1300 m, alpine high temperatures around -2 C.
Avalanche Summary
Activity since last weekend has been limited, consisting primarily of small loose snow avalanches (mostly on sunny slopes) and isolated cornice falls and wind slabs (mostly on north and east facing slopes).On Tuesday, a small cornice fall triggered a size 2 persistent slab avalanche. The avalanche occurred in north-facing glaciated terrain in the Selkirks and appeared to have stepped down to glacier ice (100-200 cm deep).
Snowpack Summary
Recent warm alpine temperatures left crusty surfaces on southerly aspects, while the snow remained dry on northerly aspects. Old wind slabs and cornices could be lingering at higher elevations.The middle and lower portions of the snowpack are generally well-settled and strong. On southerly aspects you may find a thin sun crust with facets down around 50 cm. Recent sudden snowpack results indicate this layer could still be a failure plane on steep southerly slopes in thin snowpack areas. Professionals are also tracking a layer around 130 to 180 cm deep, composed of weak faceted grains, surface hoar, and a sun crust. The chance of triggering this layer is very low. In shallow snowpack areas, the base of the snowpack may also still be composed of weak faceted grains.
Problems
Wind Slabs
Wind Slab avalanches are the release of a cohesive layer of snow (a slab) formed by the wind. Wind typically transports snow from the upwind sides of terrain features and deposits snow on the downwind side. Wind slabs are often smooth and rounded and sometimes sound hollow, and can range from soft to hard. Wind slabs that form over a persistent weak layer (surface hoar, depth hoar, or near-surface facets) may be termed Persistent Slabs or may develop into Persistent Slabs.