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Avalanche Forecast

Archived

Jan 2nd, 2014–Jan 3rd, 2014

Alpine
Natural avalanches possible, human triggered probable.
Treeline
Natural avalanches unlikely, human triggered possible.
Below Treeline
Natural avalanches unlikely, human triggered possible.
Alpine
Natural avalanches possible, human triggered probable.
Treeline
Natural avalanches unlikely, human triggered possible.
Below Treeline
Natural avalanches unlikely.
Alpine
Natural avalanches unlikely, human triggered possible.
Treeline
Natural avalanches unlikely, human triggered possible.
Below Treeline
Natural avalanches unlikely.

Regions

Northwest Inland.

Confidence

Fair - Due to the number of field observations

Weather Forecast

Friday: A mix of sun and cloud with no precipitation expected. Moderate to strong NW winds and freezing levels around 500m. Saturday: Mainly cloudy but dry with light NW alpine winds and freezing levels around 700m. Sunday: Cloudy with sunny periods but dry with freezing levels dropping to valley bottoms.

Avalanche Summary

Visibility was limited, but reports from Wednesday include several natural avalanches up to Size 2 in steep alpine gullies and wet sluffs from lower elevation cliffs.

Snowpack Summary

Weaknesses within and under the recent storm snow will likely take several days to settle and strengthen after the storm passes. A number of rain crusts may exist in the upper and mid snowpack, primarily below 1500 m. Deeper in the snowpack a layer of facets/surface hoar formed in early December may be found in the top 100cm. The mid and lower snowpack is still structurally weak and faceted with depth hoar and an early season crust near the ground.

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.

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.