Ski conditions are great but the snowpack is still unstable. Best to avoid big terrain features and choose conservative lines!
Weather Forecast
Light flurries with little accumulation can be expected through the weekend. Cold temperatures will persist with only light Northerly winds.
Snowpack Summary
40 cm of settled storm snow with little wind effect except in wind prone areas. This snow has buried various surfaces including windslab. The Feb. 10th drought layer is now almost a meter deep in the snowpack. Basal facets are still lurking at the base of this snowpack. Field teams in the Cavell area had widespread whumpfing on a moraine feature.
Avalanche Summary
No new observations today with teams in the Cavell area and a patrol to Saskatchewan Crossing. Several large avalanches were observed earlier this week. These avalanches exhibited wide propagation, were primarily found in big East facing alpine terrain, and several were triggered by cornice fall.
Confidence
The weather pattern is stable on Saturday
Problems
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.
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.