Wind affected snow up high, soft snow in sheltered areas. This is a good time for the bigger circuits, but don't expect much for ski quality in the Alpine.
Confidence
High - Due to the number and quality of field observations
Weather Forecast
The weather pattern is pretty stable at the moment. Wednesday will be a mix of sun and cloud with no precipitation. Temperature in the Alpine should reach a high of -10 °C with light winds from the north. A warming trend will begin on Thursday. There is no precipitation expected in the foreseeable future.
Avalanche Summary
Several small wind slab avalanches up to size 1.5 have occurred on steep N, NE and E aspects in the Alpine over the past 72 hours. These slides are between 10 and 20cm thick and have generally not run very far down slope.
Snowpack Summary
Surface facetting due to cold temps and clear skies. Several snowpits through the region toady show a fairly consistent snowpack story, characterized by low density surfaces, generally solid midpacks and deteriorating basal layers (with some basal facets and depth hoar developing). The existence of the Dec 4th persistent weak layer is variable, and no compression test results were found in any of the snowpits today. In the Alpine thin wind slabs are fairly dominant, particularly in lee and cross-loaded features. Some recent naturally triggered avalanche activity has occurred with these wind slabs.
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.