Avalanche Forecast

High -

Wednesday: Mainly cloudy with isolated flurries and a trace of new snow. Light southwest winds. Alpine high temperatures of -20.Thursday: A mix of sun and cloud. Light northeast winds. Alpine high temperatures of -18.Friday: Mainly cloudy with isolated flurries bringing a trace of new snow, increasing overnight. Light east winds. Alpine high temperatures of -16.

No new avalanches have been reported in the region. In addition to lingering wind slabs at higher elevations, persistent slab avalanche danger remains a primary concern in areas where the last week's storm snow consolidates into a slab above the December 15 interface. Please submit your observations to the Mountain Information Network (MIN).

Last week's storm brought 20-40cm of new snow to the region. Predominantly northwest winds since the storm redistributed loose snow at the surface into wind slabs on a variety of aspects at higher elevations while cold temperatures inhibited slab formation elsewhere. The cold has also worked to break down the cohesion and reactivity of older wind slabs. The storm snow lies over a variety of old surfaces, including large surface hoar (weak, feather-like crystals), crusts formed by sun or wind, and sugary facets. The bond at this old snow interface is of the greatest importance in areas where the overlying snow has consolidated into a slab. The most concerning areas areas are those that saw pronounced surface hoar development in advance of the storm, such as sheltered areas at and below tree line.A crust which was formed by rain in late November is another major feature in the snowpack and is down approximately 70-100cm at tree line elevations. This interface has shown some signs of reactivity limited to steep, variably loaded alpine features in adjacent regions.