Highway 93N will be closed from 10am-5pm MST on Wednesday for Avalanche Control from Saskatchewan River Crossing to Parker Ridge. No Skiing or Climbing in the area.
Weather Forecast
A ridge of high pressure has rebuilt, clear skies with no snow in the forecast, temps will gradually rise overnight and into Wednesday reaching a high of -12 in the alpine. Light North West winds will shift to moderate from the West on Thursday.
Snowpack Summary
10-15cm of new snow has been redistributed by moderate NW winds into slab on lee and cross loaded features. The new windslab overlies a shallow, faceted and weak snowpack. The Nov. crust can still be found about 30 cm up from ground but is faceting into large depth hoar. The upper half of the snowpack has layers of wind slab and facets.
Avalanche Summary
Numerous size 1-2.5 loose dry avalanches on all aspects and elevations, but mainly out of steep, rocky terrain features. One sz 2.5 slab avalanche pulled out on Mt. Cirrus, several gullies North of Polar Circus, running mid path above the cliff face.Ice Climbers be aware, the cold temps have made free hanging ice brittle and they are breaking off.
Confidence
Due to the number and quality of field observations
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.
Loose Dry
Loose Dry avalanches are the release of dry unconsolidated snow and typically occur within layers of soft snow near the surface of the snowpack. These avalanches start at a point and entrain snow as they move downhill, forming a fan-shaped avalanche. Other names for loose-dry avalanches include point-release avalanches or sluffs.