Regions
South Coast Inland.
Variable snowfall amounts are forecast for the region, with the most expected in the south. Treat the danger as HIGH if you find more than 30 cm of snow accumulation. This snow may be very touchy to human traffic.
Confidence
Moderate - Intensity of incoming weather systems is uncertain
Weather Forecast
FRIDAY NIGHT: Cloudy with snowfall, accumulation 5 to 10 cm and possibly more in the south of the region, strong to extreme southwest winds, freezing level 800 m.SATURDAY: Cloudy with snowfall, accumulation 5 to 10 cm, strong southwest winds, alpine temperature -5 C, freezing level rising to 1400 m.SUNDAY: A mix of sun and clouds, light north winds, alpine temperature -6 C, freezing level 800 m.MONDAY: A mix of sun and clouds, light northwest winds, alpine temperature -8 C, freezing level 700 m.
Avalanche Summary
No new avalanches were observed on Thursday. Avalanche activity may increase into the weekend, depending on how much snow accumulates.
Snowpack Summary
Around 5 to 10 cm of snow fell on Friday and more is expected on Saturday. All this snow is falling onto a sun crust on south aspects, a temperature crust below around 1700 m on all aspects, and feathery surface hoar in sheltered areas at all elevation bands. The new snow may not bond well to these surfaces.Below this, the snowpack is generally well-settled. In sections of the region, for example in Manning Park, you may still find a weak layer of surface hoar buried about 60 to 100 cm in sheltered areas around treeline. This layer has not produced any recent avalanches but snowpack tests suggest that it still could.
Problems
Storm Slabs
Storm Slab avalanches are the release of a cohesive layer (a slab) of new snow that breaks within new snow or on the old snow surface. Storm-slabs typically last between a few hours and few days (following snowfall). Storm-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.