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Avalanche Forecast

Archived

Jan 2nd, 2018–Jan 3rd, 2018

Alpine
Natural avalanches unlikely, human triggered possible.
Treeline
Natural avalanches unlikely.
Below Treeline
Natural avalanches unlikely.
Alpine
Natural avalanches unlikely, human triggered possible.
Treeline
Natural avalanches unlikely.
Below Treeline
Natural avalanches unlikely.
Alpine
Natural avalanches unlikely, human triggered possible.
Treeline
Natural avalanches unlikely.
Below Treeline
Natural avalanches unlikely.

Regions

Northwest Inland.

Pockets of lingering wind slab are still proving reactive to human traffic at higher elevations.

Confidence

Moderate - Due to the number of field observations

Weather Forecast

Isolated flurries with a mild inversion until small amounts of snow on Thursday & Friday.WEDNESDAY: Cloudy with isolated flurries. Ridge wind moderate from the south west. High temperatures near +1 Celsius. Freezing level 500m. THURSDAY: Snow. Accumulation 5 cm possible. Ridge wind moderate from the south west. Temperature -2. Freezing level 600 m. FRIDAY: Snow. Accumulation 5 cm possible. Ridge wind strong from the south west. Temperature -2. Freezing level 600 m

Avalanche Summary

Isolated pockets of wind slab (to Size 2) have proven reactive to intentional human triggering, including southerly aspects around 1700m. Although the wind slabs were relatively thin (10 cm thick on average), they did run far.

Snowpack Summary

Surface snow has been affected by winds from a variety of directions. The degree of wind effect varies throughout the region, with the most dramatic winds associated with outflow conditions in western parts of the region near coastal inlets. Sheltered areas may still have 10-30 cm of powder from previous storms. A variable weak layer that formed in mid-December can be found roughly 20 cm below the surface. This mid-December layer is comprised of crusts on solar aspects and feathery surface hoar in sheltered locations.The lower snowpack is generally well settled with two prominent crusts. The late-November crust can be found 30-50 cm below the surface and the October crust is near the base of the snowpack.For an update on conditions from last week (which haven't changed too much) check out the Mountain Information Network (MIN) report here. And please submit your own observations to the MIN!

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.