Local forecasts vary right now. If the current warnings of 20cm's hold true, expect the hazard to quickly and dramatically increase. Monitor changing conditions in the field.
Confidence
Fair - Timing, track, or intensity of incoming weather system is uncertain
Weather Forecast
There is a fast moving westerly system that will blow through the area tonight. There is some light snow expected (6cm's), but the winds will be the real story. Alpine(3000m) winds are expected to peak at over100kph tonight. The temps will fall in the same range as we have been experiencing lately.
Avalanche Summary
Limited observations today
Snowpack Summary
The flurries expected last night never materialized. According to our weather stations, there was no new snow. Despite that, the alpine ridges will still have windslabs in specific areas that are touchy to human triggering. There has not been a lot of change in the snowpack as a whole. The basic structure is a dense layer sitting in top of a rotten, weak base (the Nov 6th crust and/or the Nov 24th facets). The depth of the the Nov 6th varies from area to area, but generally it is down 70-90 at treeline.
Problems
Deep Persistent Slabs
Deep Persistent Slab avalanches are the release of a thick cohesive layer of hard snow (a slab), when the bond breaks between the slab and an underlying persistent weak layer deep in the snowpack. The most common persistent weak layers involved in deep, persistent slabs are depth hoar or facets surrounding a deeply buried crust. Deep Persistent Slabs are typically hard to trigger, are very destructive and dangerous due to the large mass of snow involved, and can persist for months once developed. They are often triggered from areas where the snow is shallow and weak, and are particularly difficult to forecast for and manage.
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.