Avalanche Forecast

Moderate

On Tuesday, continued evidence of a widespread natural avalanche cycle from last weekend's storm was reported. Most recently, a skier remotely triggered a size 2 slab avalanche from 75 m away on a northeast aspect at 2000 m. This avalanche reportedly stepped down to the mid-February interface.

Reactive storm slabs are likely on Thursday, especially in areas at upper elevations that see more wind effect.

Avoid solar slopes when the sun comes out.

Up to 70 cm of snow sits above a crust on all aspects except on high north-facing terrain, where new snow buries 5 cm of faceted snow overlying a crust from earlier in March. This second crust likely doesn’t exist above 2100 m. Strong southwest winds continue to redistribute some of the fresh snow onto lee slopes at the ridgeline.

A layer of facets and surface hoar from mid-February can be found down around 90 to 110 cm, and snowpack tests are producing sudden planar results on it.

Another layer of facets and surface hoar from late January can be found down 110 to 150 cm.

Wednesday Night

Cloudy with isolated flurries up to 5 cm. 10 to 45 km/h southwest ridgetop wind. Treeline temperature -6 °C. Freezing level valley bottom.

Thursday

Cloudy with some sunny periods and isolated flurries. 15 to 30 km/h southeast ridgetop wind. Treeline temperature -4 °C. Freezing level 1200 m.

Friday

Cloudy with sunny periods. 10 to 15 km/h southeast ridgetop wind. Treeline temperature -7 °C. Freezing level valley bottom.

Saturday

Cloudy with 3 to 7 cm of snow. 15 to 40 km/h southwest ridgetop wind. Treeline temperature -2 °C. Freezing level 1300 m.

More details can be found in the Mountain Weather Forecast.

• Avoid freshly wind-loaded terrain features.
• Keep your guard up as storm slabs may remain sensitive to human triggering.
• Even brief periods of direct sun could produce natural avalanches.
• Storm slabs in motion may step down to deeper layers resulting in large avalanches.