Fast travel conditions continue, but good quality skiing is hard to find. Use extra caution in shallow snowpack areas at upper elevations where it is still possible to trigger a small wind slab.
Weather Forecast
Thursday will be mainly cloudy with isolated flurries. Alpine temperatures should reach a high of -3 °C. Winds at ridge-top will be out of the southwest at 60-70 km/h. Freezing level will rise to 1700 metres by the afternoon.
Avalanche Summary
No recent reports or observations.
Snowpack Summary
Surface facetting continues. Sun crusts are present on steep solar aspects. Surface hoar has been observed in sheltered areas below treeline, but some surface hoar growth has also been found into the Alpine. Wind slabs continue to be widespread at upper elevations. Several recent snow profiles indicate that there is not yet a persistent weak layer in the snowpack (but the winter is young!).
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.