Watch for unstable snow in lower elevations and in highly-sheltered terrain features at any elevation. Generally stable conditions exist at and above treeline, but even a small avalanche could have devastating consequences in obstacle-rich and low-snow runouts.
Wind slabs that may be reactive to human triggers can be found in sheltered, low-elevation terrain. Expect the size, distribution, hardness, depth, and sensitivity of wind slabs to be highly variable. Because of this variability and the characteristics of our low-elevation terrain, potential avalanche size is estimated at D1 - D1.5.
A strong-over-weak snowpack structure is common in wind-protected areas where new snow and wind-transported snow has had the ability to collect over the past few days. The strength of recent winds combined with the light density of new snow make it unlikely to find unstable slabs at treeline and above treeline. You are much more likely to find deeper snow and unstable snow in low-elevation locations where new snow and wind slabs are sitting on top of a variety of weak snow combinations including old crusts with adjacent facet layers and basal facets. We recognize that there is limited avalanche terrain below treeline, however any lower elevation areas that can be classified as avalanche terrain may have an avalanche problem today. These areas can act as terrain traps, compounding the consequences of an avalanche. It is worth proceeding with caution on snow slopes in wind-sheltered areas that are greater than 30 degrees in steepness. As always, look out for red flags that can help identify this avalanche problem such as shooting cracks, collapsing, and whumphing.
At and above treeline, avalanche terrain has taken a beating from recent and prolonged high winds. Very hard wind slabs exist that are largely unreactive to human triggering. It is worth noting that if someone was able to find a thin spot in a slab and trigger even a small avalanche, slick snow surfaces increase the likelihood of a long sliding fall and a shallow snowpack with plenty of obstacles make this an unforgiving scenario.
