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Confidence
Fair - Timing or intensity of solar radiation is uncertain on Sunday
Weather Forecast
A ridge of high pressure will develop and bring mainly clear skies for the forecast period. Sunday: Clearing throughout the day / Light northwest winds / Freezing level at about 2000m Monday: Mix of sun and cloud / Light northwest winds / Freezing level at 2000m Tuesday: Mix of sun and cloud / Light northwest winds / Freezing level at 2800m
Avalanche Summary
No new avalanches have been reported. I expect thin wind slab avalanches could be triggered in isolated high alpine terrain, although I would expect them to gain strength fairly quickly. With forecast warming, loose wet and wet slab avalanches will remain a concern, particularly on steeper, sun-exposed slopes.
Snowpack Summary
On Friday, rain continued to soak the upper snowpack. Depending on the air temperature, snow surfaces will now appear moist or refrozen. In higher snowfall areas in the south of the region, dense new wind slabs may exist in lee terrain at the highest elevations where snow fell instead of rain. Much of the terrain below treeline is below threshold for avalanche activity.Continued warm temperatures are promoting settlement in the upper snowpack. The hard crust that formed earlier in February can be found up to 100cm below the surface at alpine elevations. Although no recent avalanches have been observed at this interface, professionals are still keeping a close eye on it as long as warm temperatures persist. Cornices are reported to be large and fragile.
Problems
Loose Wet
Loose Wet avalanches are the release of wet unconsolidated snow or slush. These avalanches typically occur within layers of wet snow near the surface of the snowpack, but they may quickly gouge into lower snowpack layers. Like Loose Dry Avalanches, they start at a point and entrain snow as they move downhill, forming a fan-shaped avalanche. Other names for loose-wet avalanches include point-release avalanches or sluffs. Loose Wet avalanches can trigger slab avalanches that break into deeper snow layers.
Cornices
Cornice Fall is the release of an overhanging mass of snow that forms as the wind moves snow over a sharp terrain feature, such as a ridge, and deposits snow on the downwind (leeward) side. Cornices range in size from small wind drifts of soft snow to large overhangs of hard snow that are 30 feet (10 meters) or taller. They can break off the terrain suddenly and pull back onto the ridge top and catch people by surprise even on the flat ground above the slope. Even small cornices can have enough mass to be destructive and deadly. Cornice Fall can entrain loose surface snow or trigger slab avalanches.