With as much as 10cm coming our way in the next 48hrs the building windslabs in the alpine should be on one's radar. Treeline and below might have some decent skiing tucked away in sheltered areas tomorrow and the next day.
Confidence
Fair - Timing, track, or intensity of incoming weather system is uncertain
Weather Forecast
5 cm's of snow is forecasted for the next 24hrs with strong alpine winds (50km/hr). Temperatures will remain reasonable with an alpine high of -7. Down the road, we are expecting a short pulse of snow that may force the hazard up. For the incoming pulse, winds will reach into the extreme range from the west.
Avalanche Summary
No new avalanches
Snowpack Summary
Light to moderate snow transport at ridge top has been helping the windslabs build. While immediate lee areas are the most likely places to find the slabs, we can expect these slabs to start creeping down further and further from the ridges. Open areas at treeline will likely have these slabs as well. Aside from these new slabs, it is business as usual with the deeper crusts. The Nov 6th has the most potential for significant avalanches due to its deeper position (60-90cm's down).
Problems
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.
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.