Winter is back! If it's deep enough to ride, it's deep enough to slide! 35-40cm of overnight snow has doubled the snowpack depth.
Weather Forecast
A lull in the storm today, with freezing levels dropping to 1700m and ridge-top winds easing to moderate. Saturday will bring 15-25cm of snow later in the day, with strong SW winds and freezing levels around 1500m.
Snowpack Summary
35-40cm of snow overnight has doubled the snowpack depth at treeline. A melt-freeze crust ~15-20cm off the ground is an early layer of concern, especially in the alpine on open, planar slopes.
Avalanche Summary
No field observations and limited observations from the road due to poor visibility. Suspect numerous avalanches from steep, lee alpine features, such as the north side of Macdonald and Cheops.
Problems
Storm Slabs
Storm Slab avalanches are the release of a cohesive layer (a slab) of new snow that breaks within new snow or on the old snow surface. Storm-slabs typically last between a few hours and few days (following snowfall). Storm-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.