Regions
South Coast Inland.
Wind slabs at upper elevations is the primary concern. Shooting cracks and whumphing are good indicators of unstable snow and wind slabs.
Weather Forecast
FRIDAY: A mix of sun and cloud. Alpine temperatures near -7 and ridgetop winds light from the northeast. Freezing levels near 1000 m.SATURDAY: A mix of sun and cloud. Alpine temperatures near -13 and ridgetop winds light to moderate from the northeast. SUNDAY: Sunny. Alpine temperatures near -13 and ridgetop winds moderate from the northeast.
Avalanche Summary
On Wednesday, numerous reactive human triggered wind slabs were reported up to size 1.5 mostly from east-southeast aspects near 1900 m. Also to note, overnight Tuesday through Wednesday there was a fairly widespread natural wind slab cycle up to size 1.5 on all aspects and elevations. Reactive wind slabs continue to be the name of the game.
Snowpack Summary
Strong northeast wind has formed pockets of wind slab in exposed terrain and reactive to human triggers on southerly aspects. Wind slabs have also been failing on a weak faceted layer down 20-50 cm but we're uncertain of how widespread this layer is. New surface hoar and needle crystals are forming in sheltered locations on most aspects and elevations. Low-density snow may sluff easily from steeper terrain features. The lower snowpack is generally well-settled.
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.