Watch for early season hazards, such as shallow buried rocks and trees. Unusually high freezing levels expected.
Confidence
Moderate - Freezing levels are uncertain
Weather Forecast
Warm and windy for the next few days. Freezing levels will rise to mountain top on Tuesday. No precipitation expected.
Avalanche Summary
Nothing new observed or reported in past 24hrs.
Snowpack Summary
Early season conditions exist with snow only really in the Alpine elevation band. Wind slabs are found in lee features and gullies in the Alpine. Moist snow on solar aspects in the afternoon.
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.
Loose Wet
Loose Wet avalanches are the release of wet unconsolidated snow or slush. These avalanches typically occur within layers of wet snow near the surface of the snowpack, but they may quickly gouge into lower snowpack layers. Like Loose Dry Avalanches, they start at a point and entrain snow as they move downhill, forming a fan-shaped avalanche. Other names for loose-wet avalanches include point-release avalanches or sluffs. Loose Wet avalanches can trigger slab avalanches that break into deeper snow layers.