Avalanche Forecast

Fair - Track of incoming weather is uncertain on Monday

Overnight and Sunday: Increased cloud with trace amounts of new snow / Light southwest winds / Freezing level at 1200mMonday: Moderate to locally heavy snowfall in the south of the region / Moderate to strong west winds / Freezing level at 1600mTuesday: Continued snowfall / Moderate southwest winds / Freezing level at 1100m Note: The track of Monday's system is uncertain with some weather models showing the main pulse having the greatest impact south of the border. We should have a better handle on forecast snowfall amounts on Sunday.

Although reports were limited at the time of publishing, warming most likely triggered a round of loose wet avalanche activity on sun-exposed slopes on Saturday.

Dribs and drabs of recent snowfall overlie old wind slabs in exposed areas, and mingle with spotty surface hoar or facets in sheltered locations. A sun crust exists on south facing terrain. Below 1400m in the north and 1700m in the south the light amounts of recent snow overlie a thick rain crust.Between 60-100cm below the surface is a layer of surface hoar which was buried on February 20th. This layer was the culprit in most of the large avalanches that occurred last weekend. Triggering this layer is becoming more difficult, but I would recommend using increased caution on large, unsupported slopes that did not release during the avalanche cycle last weekend. Below this the snowpack is generally well settled and strong.