It seems we are stuck at CON for the treeline elevations. There isn't enough confidence just yet to drop the regional hazard to MOD. Having said that, sheltered areas are offering good ski quality on north to east aspects.
Confidence
Moderate - Due to the number of field observations
Weather Forecast
Light winds tonight with a chill -22 expected at 2500m. Tomorrow will see some cloud, but mostly clear skies. Ridge top winds will be light and from the west. The day time high will hopefully reach -5 at 2500m with an overall freezing level of 1600m.
Avalanche Summary
Nothing new today, however observations were limited.
Snowpack Summary
We are in a period of steady weather lately and the snowpack is showing it. Not a significant change from yesterday. We are still seeing a variety of crusts on solar aspects up to 2200m, and possibly higher in isolated steep solar aspects. The two concerning layers are the recent Feb 11th crust which is down 30-40cm at treeline and the Jan 6th facet layer which is down 50-60cm at treeline. Both layers have produced natural avalanches in the past, but are now mostly quiet, which puts them into the human triggering category. The alpine has a more pronounced windslab problem with localized areas of reactive wind slab.
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.
Persistent Slabs
Persistent Slab avalanches are the release of a cohesive layer of snow (a slab) in the middle to upper snowpack, when the bond to an underlying persistent weak layer breaks. Persistent layers include: surface hoar, depth hoar, near-surface facets, or faceted snow. Persistent weak layers can continue to produce avalanches for days, weeks or even months, making them especially dangerous and tricky. As additional snow and wind events build a thicker slab on top of the persistent weak layer, this avalanche problem may develop into a Deep Persistent Slab.