Clearwater

Managing wind slabs by seeking out sheltered snow is the main story, but explosives control also coaxed out a few persistent slabs Thursday. Large triggers (you know who you are!) take heed.

Moderate

• We are uncertain due to a limited number of field observations.

Explosives control east of Kelowna produced several size 2 persistent slabs failing on the 30 - 100 cm-deep January crust on Thursday, evidence of persistent slabs reacting to large triggers in suspect terrain.

If you are heading into the backcountry, please share any observations with the Mountain Information Network.

Up to about 30 cm of storm snow since March 7 has been redistributed by strong, mainly southwest wind in open terrain. This snow should overlie crust below at least 1800 m and hard old snow above this.

Within the top 100 cm of the snowpack, there are a few layers of surface hoar, facets, crusts or a combination of the three. The January layer is only about 70 cm deep in this region. Other than Thursday's explosives results, these layers have not triggered recent avalanches, but they could become reactive with rain next week. Until then, thin-to-thick snowpack areas near ridgetop would be the most likely places to get surprised.

The remainder of the snowpack is well settled and strong.

Friday Night
Partly cloudy with a band of flurries between Big White and Sun Peaks bringing 5 to 10 cm of new snow, a trace elsewhere. 20 to 40 km/h northwest ridgetop wind, increasing. Treeline temperature -9 °C.

Saturday
A mix of sun and cloud with isolated flurries and a trace of new snow. 30 to 40 km/h northwest ridgetop wind, easing. Treeline temperature -9 °C.

Sunday
A mix of sun and clouds with cloud increasing and flurries starting with a couple cm of new snow before increasing overnight. 20 to 40 km/h southwest ridgetop wind, increasing. Treeline temperature -7 °C.

Monday
Coudy with continuing snowfall bringing 20 to 30 total cm of new snow. 40 to 70 km/h southwest ridgetop wind, increasing. Treeline temperature reaching 3 °C as freezing level shoots to 2400 m.

More details can be found in the Mountain Weather Forecast.

• Watch for newly formed and reactive wind slabs as you transition into wind-affected terrain.
• Watch for signs of instability like whumpfing, hollow sounds, shooting cracks, or recent avalanches.
• In areas where deep persistent slabs may exist, avoid shallow or variable depth snowpacks and slopes above cliffs.