Winds have been whipping in Waterton, be cautious of thin rocky areas where it may be possible to trigger deeper layers.
Strong to extreme winds have stripped fetches in the alpine, leaving very little snow available for transport. Newer wind slabs exist at treeline and below, especially in burnt areas.
Melt freeze crusts and facets from early season snowfalls are lurking at the bottom of the snowpack. Test results and previous avalanches lead us to believe human triggering of this layer is unlikely, but not out of the question.
Tuesday: Cloudy with sunny periods and no new snow. Strong SW winds and a high of -7.
Wednesday: Sun and cloud, moderate SW winds and a high of -5.
Thursday: Flurries depositing 5-10cm of new snow. Moderate SW winds and a high of -6
A true rockies snowpack! Windslabs exist at all elevations, especially in burnt areas. A problematic weak crust facet combo formed in November is down 60cm, and additional crust/facet layers formed in October form the bottom of the snowpack.
Scattered small naturally triggered windslabs have been spotted in lee areas at treeline and below in the past few days.
