Both wind slabs and cornices will become more sensitive to failure with heating. These events could provide the large load necessary to trigger a deep persistent slab. Be conservative with your terrain selection this weekend.
Weather Forecast
Temperatures in the valley bottoms are forecast to go into the teens for weekend and above zero into the foreseeable future. Conditions will remain dry and windy. Freezing levels are expected to reach mountaintop for a sustained period on Saturday. With these temperatures, solar radiation will have a profound effect on the steep solar aspects.
Snowpack Summary
Thursdays warmth and sun has created a crust on any steep south facing. Recent strong and turbulent West winds have created wind slabs in the lee of exposed features but even downslope from ridgetops, at all elevations. 30 to 40 cm above the ground weak, facetted snow remains a concern on steep or unsupported planar slopes especially in thin areas.
Avalanche Summary
There was some avalanche activity associated with the wind and storm slabs over the last few days. Thursday the warm temperatures were starting to cause snowballing out of rocky areas on steep southeast facing slopes.
Confidence
The weather pattern is 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.
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.
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.