Loose Wet
- Alpine
- Treeline
- Below treeline
- Likelihood
- Possible
- Size
- 1–2
After another solid refreeze of the snowpack last night, sunshine, light winds and warming temperatures will heat up East, then South, then West facing terrain at all elevations and make shallow Loose-Wet sloughing possible on steep slopes. A thin layer of light new snow that fell 2 days ago on top of a firm crust will be in a state of transition and will be more suspectable to easy wet sloughing, especially in the northern portions of the forecast zone which received up to 5” of new snow, and even more in small wind-loaded areas. Even a relatively thin layer of wet surface snow can lead to consequential slides on steep slopes, especially if they funnel thru a couloir or gully feature or end in a depression. Steep low-elevation Northerly facing terrain could become concerning as well as the day progresses, but afternoon clouds may limit this concern on upper elevation Westerly facing slopes. Decreasing slope supportability, saturated wet snow, and rollerballs are all indications of increasing loose-wet slide potential and that lower angle slopes or cooler aspects should be sought.