Watch for newly formed and reactive wind slabs as you transition into wind affected terrain.
Cornice failures could trigger very large persistent slabs.
15 to 20 cm of new snow and strong southwest winds formed wind slabs on lee aspects at upper elevations. These slabs are most likely to be reactive on steep slopes below ridgetops.
Cornice failures could trigger very large persistent slabs.
Persistent weak layers may linger in the upper snowpack. Triggering may be possible in areas without a thick/supportive crust above the weak layer, most likely at upper elevations.
No new avalanches were reported on Tuesday.
Last week's rain and warm temperatures triggered a widespread natural slab avalanche cycle up to size 3.5.
If you are heading into the backcountry, please consider sharing conditions via the MIN.
15 to 20 cm of new snow and strong southwest winds formed wind slabs on lee aspects at upper elevations. These slabs are most likely to be reactive on steep slopes below ridgetops.
The new snow sits on a crust on solar aspects and dry snow on northerly aspects at upper elevations.
Below this, 40 to 70 cm of moist snow sits above a crust (1 to 10 cm thick). Various persistent weak layers may still exist in the top 120 cm of the snowpack. These may remain possible to trigger at upper elevations in areas where the crust above the weak layer is not supportive.
In shallow snowpack areas, depth hoar (large facets) can be found near the bottom of the snowpack.
Wednesday Night
Mostly cloudy. 3 to 10 cm of snow. 40 km/h southwest ridgetop wind. Treeline temperature -7 °C.
Thursday
Mix of sun and clouds. 0 to 5 cm of snow. 40 km/h west ridgetop wind. Treeline temperature -10 °C.
Friday
Mostly sunny. 50 km/h west ridgetop wind. Treeline temperature -8 °C.
Saturday
Mostly sunny. 40 km/h southwest ridgetop wind. Treeline temperature -3 °C.
More details can be found in the Mountain Weather Forecast.
