Regions
South Coast Inland.
Wind slabs have formed on a variety of aspects due to shifting winds. Natural avalanche activity has tapered off but human triggered avalanches remain possible.
Confidence
High - The weather pattern is stable
Weather Forecast
The arctic ridge will continue to bring cold, outflow winds and dry weather to the coast tomorrow. Thursday will see a slight change when the low slides south bringing some precipitation. Wednesday: Sunny with some cloudy periods. Alpine temperatures near -8 with light ridgetop winds from the North.Thursday: Cloudy with sunny periods. Alpine temperatures near -6 with light ridgetop winds from the North and freezing levels 800 m.Friday: A mix of sun and cloud isolated flurries. Alpine temperatures near -10 with light ridgetop winds from the northeast. Freezing levels valley bottom.
Avalanche Summary
On Monday, wind slabs were easily triggered by the weight of a person up to size 1. Reverse loading from northerly winds has formed reactive wind slabs on southwesterly slopes.
Snowpack Summary
15-30 cm of recent new snow has been redistributed by southwesterly winds shifting to north and east. This is sitting on a crust on all but northerly aspects, wind-affected surfaces in the alpine, and possibly a mixture of weak feathery surface hoar and/or sugary facets in sheltered terrain at treeline and below.Below this down 50-80 cm sits a crust that formed mid-January right to mountain top on southerly aspects and on all aspects below 1700 m. Additionally at this depth, feathery surface hoar may be found in shady sheltered areas at treeline. This surface hoar layer is reported to be most prevalent in the far southeast of the region near Manning Park.The remainder of the snowpack is generally well-settled.
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.