Avalanche Forecast

Moderate

• We are uncertain about how quickly persistent slabs are gaining strength.
• We are uncertain due to variable freezing levels.

We do not have any recent reports of avalanches, but suspect a natural cycle occurred with recent rain and warm temperatures.

Last weekend (Feb 28/Mar 1), numerous large (up to size 3) avalanches were reported, both natural and human-triggered, all suspected to have failed on a late January crust/facet layer. They were mostly at treeline, although two human-triggered avalanches were in open, alpine, or alpine-like terrain.

Recent precipitation fell as snow at higher elevations and rain at lower elevations, with temperatures cooling significantly over the weekend.

At higher elevations, strong westerly winds accompanied the snow, creating deeper deposits in leeward and cross-loaded terrain. Mid elevations likely have a crust or light snow atop a crust from the recent cooling, while surface snow at lower elevations remains moist or crusty.

On north aspects, 50 to 150 cm below the surface, two persistent weak layers exist (buried in late January and early February) and contain facets over a crust. It remains uncertain whether the recent warm conditions had any effect on the reactivity of these layers.

Sunday Night
Mostly cloudy. 2 to 8 cm of snow. 50 km/h west ridgetop wind. Treeline temperature -8 °C.

Monday
Cloudy. 3 to 5 cm of snow. 30 km/h southwest ridgetop wind. Treeline temperature -10 °C.

Tuesday
Mostly cloudy. 10 to 20 cm of snow. 40 km/h southwest ridgetop wind. Treeline temperature -10 °C.

Wednesday
Mostly cloudy. 15 to 20 cm of snow. 50 km/h southwest ridgetop wind. Treeline temperature -7 °C.

More details can be found in the Mountain Weather Forecast.

• Approach lee and cross-loaded slopes with caution.
• Wind slabs are most reactive during their formation.
• If triggered, wind slabs may step down to deeper layers, causing larger avalanches.
• Avoid shallow, rocky areas where the snowpack transitions from thick to thin.