Avalanche Forecast

A series of upper disturbances are expected as the arctic front pushes West of the Divide bringing localized periods of snow to the region. It's hard to pin-point snowfall amounts and they may be heavier than what the models suggest.

Overnight Saturday: Light snow 5-10 cm. Ridgetop wind mostly light with strong gusts from the northwest. Alpine temperatures near -12.

Saturday: Snow amounts 5-15 cm. Ridgetop wind moderate from the East. Alpine temperatures -12.

Sunday: Mix of sun and cloud with some flurries. Ridgetop wind light from the East and alpine temperatures dipping to -25. 

Monday: Mix of sun and cloud. Ridgetop wind light from the East and temperatures -25. 

No recent reports on Friday. On Wednesday, numerous loose-dry natural avalanches were reported up to size 1. 

With forecast strong wind, fresh wind slabs, and recent storm slabs will likely remain reactive Saturday. 

Loose-dry avalanches may be seen from steep slopes and terrain features.

Up to 35 cm of new snow fell over the past few days. The new snow accompanied by a strong west-northwest wind will likely redistribute some of this snow to leeward slopes and terrain features building fresh and reactive storm and wind slabs. This additional snow brings up to 60 cm of storm snow (over the past week) that sits above a plethora of old snow surfaces. In the alpine and at treeline the buried surfaces consist of stiff wind affected snow, surface facets, sastrugi, surface hoar in isolated areas sheltered by the wind, and a crust on steep solar aspects. Below 1900 m a thick crust can be found underneath the recent snow. 

A solid mid-pack sits above deeply buried decomposing crust and facet layers near the bottom of the snowpack (80-150 cm deep). Though unreactive under the current conditions, steep rocky slopes and shallow snowpacks should still be carefully assessed and approached with caution.

• Watch for changing conditions today, storm slabs may become increasingly reactive.
• Watch for signs of instability like whumpfing, hollow sounds, shooting cracks or recent avalanches.
• Avoid terrain traps where the consequence of any avalanche could be serious.
• Be carefull with sluffing in steep terrain, especially above cliffs and terrain traps.
• Pay attention to cornices and give them a wide berth when traveling on or below ridges.