Wind slabs may be reactive to human triggering at upper elevations.
Weather Forecast
SATURDAY NIGHT - Cloudy with isolated flurries / southwest winds, 30-50 km/h / alpine low temperature near -7SUNDAY - Mainly cloudy with scattered flurries / southwest winds, 10-30 km/h / alpine high temperature near -5 / freezing level 1700 mMONDAY - A mix of sun and cloud with isolated flurries / southeast winds, 10-20 km/h / alpine high temperature near -4 / freezing level 1800 mTUESDAY - Mainly cloudy with scattered flurries / northwest winds, 10-20 km/h / alpine high temperature near -2 / freezing level 1900 m
Avalanche Summary
On Friday, there were reports of a few natural and human triggered storm and wind slab avalanches up to size 2. These were mainly on north to east aspects in the alpine.On Thursday, there were several reports of natural and human triggered storm slab avalanches up to size 1.5, as well as a few natural loose wet avalanches up to size 1.5.On Tuesday, there were two reports of glide slab avalanches, size 1 and 2.5. These occurred on southeast aspects between 2200-2400 m. Both released on rock slabs.
Snowpack Summary
10-30 cm of recent storm snow sits on a melt-freeze crust on all aspects except for north slopes above 2000 m, where it sits on dry snow and surface hoar (feathery crystals) in some areas. Recent snowfall amounts taper quickly below treeline.North facing slopes above 2000 m may also have a layer of sugary faceted snow buried 50 to 70 cm.Snow is disappearing rapidly at lower elevations.
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.