Watch for fresh windslab development on Thursday as SW winds increase through the day, redistributing the 5 -15 cm of recent snow
5 - 15 cm of recent snow is available for transport into fresh windslabs, as the wind increases on Thursday. Look for isolated small windslab development in the lees of features in the alpine.
No new natural avalanches observed or reported on Wednesday.
Limited early-season observations indicate a generally well-settled Rockies snowpack with no significant weak layers. Last week's wet snow and rain left a rain crust (Nov 13) to 2300 m. In the short term, this adds stability to the snowpack and with 5-10 cm of dry snow on top, only isolated windslabs have been reported along with good early-season travel conditions. Treeline snow depths range from 40-70 cm.
SW winds are forecasted to increase through Thursday and be strong to extreme on Friday. Alpine highs for Thursday will be around -5C with increasing cloud.
