Up to 40 cm of storm snow overlies a thick hard crust.
Be patient and all the snowpack time to settle and stabilize.
Seek simple terrain and avoid steep terrain.
Snow and wind have eased off, but this recent snow may slide easily on a hard, slick, buried crust until we observe otherwise. Avalanches are expected be larger and more likely on west through north facing (leeward) slopes.
No new avalanches have been reported.
If you are heading into the backcountry, consider sharing your observations and posting a MIN.
30-50 cm of recent snow is settling above a widespread thick and hard crust that exists everywhere except the highest alpine terrain. Before being buried, this crust was reported to be smooth and hard, and the snow above may not stick well to it. So far we have had no reports to confirm this though.
Extreme southwest wind on Tuesday gradually eased to strong and then moderate for Thursday, redistributing the storm snow into leeward terrain.
Older crust layers, now buried 100 to 200 cm deep, are no longer a concern, and the lower snowpack is generally strong and bonded.
Thursday Night
Partly cloudy. 30 km/h southwest ridgetop wind. Treeline temperature -7 °C.
Friday
Mostly sunny. 40 km/h southwest ridgetop wind. Treeline temperature -3 °C.
Saturday
Mostly sunny. 40 km/h southwest ridgetop wind. Treeline temperature -3 °C.
Sunday
Mix of sun and clouds. 1 to 4 cm of snow. 40 km/h southwest ridgetop wind. Treeline temperature -5 °C.
More details can be found in the Mountain Weather Forecast.
