South Rockies

We are no longer issuing danger ratings for this region due to a lack of field data.Check out this video and blog post for more insight into managing the current condition.

Synopsis: The weather pattern should remain cool and unsettled through the weekend. Expect periods of light to moderate precipitation mixed with sunny breaks most days. Freezing levels should climb to 1800-2000 m each day and rebound to around 1500 m overnight. Ridgetop winds are generally light to moderate from the southwest. It looks like a building ridge of high pressure could bring drier and much warmer conditions early next week.

There are no recent reports of avalanche activity from the region. It's likely that any recent activity is a result of daytime warming, solar radiation , and/or periods of rain. We should see a return of warm sunny weather next week. When this happens expect a spike in loose wet activity, cornice releases, and sporadic deep slab avalanches.

This is a broad general summary of conditions in the region based solely on recent weather data and previous snowpack information. It should be supplemented with local observations to help assess avalanche danger. Please refer to this document for additional snow and avalanche information and general travel advice.Over the past week we have seen light precipitation with a snow line somewhere around 1800 m (+/- 200 m). My best guess is that stubborn wind slabs exist in high north-facing terrain while warm temperatures and solar radiation may have created moist surfaces everywhere else. If there is a good overnight freeze these surfaces will form a hard crust. The deep facet/crust persistent weakness buried at the beginning of February (now down up to 80-100+ cm) should stay on your radar, especially on all alpine slopes during sunny periods. Any activity at this interface would be large and destructive. Also, give large sagging cornices a wide berth when traveling on or below corniced ridges.