Stability is improving steadily but wind slabs remain a concern. Avoid testing their strength on steep or unsupported slopes.
Confidence
High - The weather pattern is stable
Weather Forecast
Wednesday: Mainly cloudy and no new snow. Winds light from the northwest. Freezing levels to 600 metres with alpine temperatures at -3. Thursday: Mainly cloudy. Winds light from the west. Freezing level to 800 metres with alpine temperatures to -2. Friday: Cloudy with sunny periods. Winds light to moderate from the southwest. Freezing level rising to 1800 metres with alpine temperatures to +3.
Avalanche Summary
Aside from recent Size 1 ski cut results down 7-15 cm in our new snow, no new avalanches have been reported. With that said, it is recommended to monitor the depth and reactivity of new snow as you travel, keeping in mind the potential for terrain traps to amplify the consequences of small avalanches.
Snowpack Summary
10-15 cm of new snow fell over the region over Sunday evening. Density change interfaces within and beneath this new snow proved touchy over Monday, producing Size 1 avalanches with ski cuts and skier traffic. While these new snow instabilities are likely to heal quickly, they will remain our primary avalanche hazard over the short term. The problem will be less pronounced on solar aspects and lower elevations where warm temperatures created moist surface snow which has since refrozen. Including our new snow, storm snow since Thursday now amounts to 30-40 cm at treeline elevations and above. This storm snow sits above the rain-soaked snow from last week's warmup and it is settling and bonding well to this surface. The mid and lower snowpack are well settled and stable.
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.