If you have been out in the mountains, please consider reporting your observations to the Mountain Information Network (MIN).
Weather Forecast
Freezing level dropping to valley bottoms overnight. 5-10 cm of new snow combined with light winds overnight. Overcast with light precipitation on Tuesday combined with light winds and freezing levels rising up to 1500 metres. Chance of broken or scattered cloud on Wednesday with a good overnight freeze. The next pulse of stormy weather moving into the region on Wednesday night. Warm, wet, and windy on Thursday.
Avalanche Summary
On Sunday we received reports of natural storm slab avalanches up to size 2.0 in the Monashees and the Selkirks. Natural avalanches up to size 2.5 were reported on Saturday. Skier accidental, skier remote triggered, and natural avalanches up to size 2.5 continued to be reported on Friday. Most of these avalanches were releasing in the storm snow, or at the storm snow/surface hoar interface.
Snowpack Summary
Moist snow up to 1800 metres is expected to re-freeze overnight and develop a crust up to at least 1600 metres on all aspects. Some reports from the Monashees of a thin melt-freeze crust that has developed within the storm snow that has been reactive up to size 2.0 on Sunday. Variable amounts of new snow and wind have continued to develop storm slabs 60-80 cm thick that are bonding poorly to a crust on previously sun-exposed slopes and surface hoar (February 27th) on shady and sheltered slopes. The surface hoar and/or crust layer buried February 10 is likely down over a metre. This layer has become less likely to trigger, but continues to be a concern for commercial operations.
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.
Persistent Slabs
Persistent Slab avalanches are the release of a cohesive layer of snow (a slab) in the middle to upper snowpack, when the bond to an underlying persistent weak layer breaks. Persistent layers include: surface hoar, depth hoar, near-surface facets, or faceted snow. Persistent weak layers can continue to produce avalanches for days, weeks or even months, making them especially dangerous and tricky. As additional snow and wind events build a thicker slab on top of the persistent weak layer, this avalanche problem may develop into a Deep Persistent Slab.