Strong southerly wind, warm temperatures and rain. Words that we learn to fear in the Chic-Chocs. 🌈
Wind slabs can be found on leeward aspects, mainly in gullies, depressions and terrain breaks. The strong wind of the last few days, as well as the early season conditions, make this problem very sporadic and isolated, so it does not affect the hazard index. Consider recently loaded areas in the alpine as having a higher hazard rating.
No new avalanche activity has been observed or reported. Please share your observations at [email protected], or with the Mountain Information Network.
In leeward areas, between 3 and 5 cm of very light new snow rested directly on the crust formed by the rain and ice from Saturday night. The southern aspects, exposed to the wind, are swept down to the crust or the rock. The surface crust supports the weight of a skier in the alpine and at the treeline.In areas of significant accumulation, between 5 and 15 cm of snow can be found between this surface crust and that of December 1, 2022. At the beginning of the season, the height of the snowpack varies from 25 to 55 cm in general and up to 70 to 80 cm in areas of maximum accumulation. Conditions remain marginal, with barely enough snow to cover obstacles and a crust (or two...) that makes travel difficult and hazardous.Rain, warm temperatures and southerly wind expected on Wednesday will not improve these conditions ...
Forecast for the Chic-Chocs ridges and summitsEvening and night: Cloudy, wind south 50 to 60 km/h, min -5. Wednesday: Rain starting in the morning (between 20 and 35 mm in total), wind southeast 70 to 90 km/h, maximum+2. Freezing level 1500 m Thursday: Rain in the morning, north wind 30 to 40 km/h, cooling to -4. Freezing level decreasing from 500 m to sea level by the end of the day.Friday: Cloudy, wind northeast 20 to 30 km/h, maximum -7. Check out the first Chic-Chocs alpine weather forecast on December 7th morning!
More details can be found in the Mountain Weather Forecast.
