Avalanche Forecast

Moderate - Timing, track, or intensity of incoming weather system is uncertain

SUNDAY: Cloudy with early-morning snowfall, accumulation 5 to 10 cm, moderate to strong westerly winds, alpine temperature -10 C, freezing level 800 m.MONDAY: Mostly sunny, light northwesterly winds, alpine temperature -10 C, freezing level 800 m.TUESDAY: Cloudy with light snowfall, accumulation 5 cm, light to moderate southwesterly winds, alpine temperature -10 C, freezing level 800 m.

On Friday and Saturday, storm slabs were triggered by skiers and explosives around treeline and alpine elevations, 10 to 25 cm deep. Otherwise, natural and skier-triggered sluffing was experience in steep terrain.Expect new snowfall to not bond well to underlying snow surfaces and hence be reactive to skier traffic.

Around 5 to 10 cm of storm snow on Friday night and another 5 to 10 cm is expected Sunday. The snow fell with strong southerly winds, producing slabs on all aspects with deeper deposits in lee features. This snow fell on variable surfaces, including wind-affected, weak surface hoar, and weak faceted snow. The new snow will likely not bond well to these surfaces and is expected to be reactive to both natural and human triggers. Beneath the new snow, variable surface hoar, faceted snow, and crusts exists around 30 to 50 cm deep, which have been reactive to human traffic.Deeper in the snowpack, weak layers that formed in January and December are gradually gaining strength. The layers include several surface hoar and facet layers buried 1-2 m below the surface and a crust/ facet interface near the base of the snowpack. No avalanches have been reported on these layers for the past two weeks and snowpack tests are showing improved bonding. Despite these signs, avalanche professionals are still treating these layers with respect and being cautious around shallow start zones and in big avalanche paths.