Avalanche Forecast

Moderate

• We are uncertain about forecast snowfall amounts.

On Tuesday, a naturally triggered size 1.5 wind slab was reported on an east aspect in the alpine.

Avalanche activity is expected to increase on Thursday with the forecast snow and wind on Wednesday night.

Forecast 20 to 30 cm of snow and extreme southwest wind on Wednesday night will form storm slabs that will be most reactive in wind affected terrain.

The recent snow sits on a 3 to 10 cm thick crust on all aspects. The thickness of the crust depends on elevation.

A persistent weak layer of surface hoar and/or crust is down 30 to 50 cm. Avalanches are unlikely on this layer in areas where a supportive crust exists below the recent snow.

In shallow snowpack areas, depth hoar (large facets) can be found near the bottom of the snowpack.

Wednesday Night
Cloudy. 20 to 30 cm of snow above 1400 m(rain below). 80 km/h southwest ridgetop wind. Treeline temperature -2 °C. Freezing level rising to 1800 m.

Thursday
Mostly cloudy. 0 to 5 cm of snow. 70 km/h west ridgetop wind. Treeline temperature -6 °C. Freezing level 1600 m.

Friday
Mostly cloudy. 0 to 5 cm of snow. 40 km/h west ridgetop wind. Treeline temperature -9 °C. Freezing level 1100 m.

Saturday
Mostly cloudy. 5 to 10 cm of snow. 30 km/h west ridgetop wind. Treeline temperature -8 °C. Freezing level valley bottom.

More details can be found in the Mountain Weather Forecast.

• Make conservative terrain choices and avoid overhead hazard.
• Use small, low consequence slopes to test the bond of the new snow.
• Watch for signs of instability like whumpfing, hollow sounds, shooting cracks, or recent avalanches.
• Expect slab conditions to change drastically as you move into wind-exposed terrain.