Elevated spring avalanche conditions. All permit areas are closed. Great day to go to the pool!
Weather Forecast
On Monday expect cloudy with sunny breaks, light west winds and a freezing level around 2100m. There is a possibility of convective flurries early in the week. The middle of the week looks like the nicest weather then deteriorates Thursday/Friday with rain showers and freezing levels to 3100m
Snowpack Summary
On all but the high North facing terrain we have a near isothermal, moist snowpack. High freezing levels, an alpine inversion and rain below 2100m have contributed to minimal overnight freezes and marginal surface crust formation.
Avalanche Summary
Prolonged elevated avalanche danger right now. Numerous avalanches to size 3.5 throughout the park from the 27-28 of April. We've seen a handful of deep slab avalanches in the backcountry mainly on South through West aspects. These slabs initiated as point releases gathered mass and overloaded a mid pack sliding surface.
Problems
Loose Wet
Loose Wet avalanches are the release of wet unconsolidated snow or slush. These avalanches typically occur within layers of wet snow near the surface of the snowpack, but they may quickly gouge into lower snowpack layers. Like Loose Dry Avalanches, they start at a point and entrain snow as they move downhill, forming a fan-shaped avalanche. Other names for loose-wet avalanches include point-release avalanches or sluffs. Loose Wet avalanches can trigger slab avalanches that break into deeper snow layers.
Wet Slabs
Wet Slab avalanches are the release of a cohesive layer of snow (a slab) that is generally moist or wet when the flow of liquid water weakens the bond between the slab and the surface below (snow or ground). They often occur during prolonged warming events and/or rain-on-snow events. Wet Slabs can be very unpredictable and destructive.
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.