Avalanche danger will steadily rise as a series of storms begin to impact the region.
Fresh wind slabs may begin to form at ridge crest Thursday.
Watch for increasingly sensitive storm slabs at all elevations on Friday as new snow and wind come together.
WEDNESDAY NIGHT: Strong west/northwest wind, freezing level at valley bottom, trace of snow possible.
THURSDAY: Overcast, strong west/northwest wind, freezing level rising to about 1500 m, 5 to 10 cm of snow possible during the day, another 5 to 10 cm possible Thursday night.
FRIDAY: Overcast, moderate to strong west/southwest wind, freezing level rising to about 1500 m, 1 to 5 cm of snow possible during the day, another 10 to 15 cm possible Friday night.
SATURDAY: Overcast, moderate to strong southwest wind, freezing level rising to about 1600 m, 10 to 25 cm of snow possible during the day with another 10 to 25 cm possible Saturday Night.
No new avalanches were reported over the past couple of days.
5-15 cm of recent new snow sits on top of a variety of old surfaces including hard wind affected snow, sun crust on slopes facing the sun and a melt freeze crust at lower elevations.
At lower elevations, two surface hoar layers 50-60 cm and 75-90 cm below the surface may still be present in the northern part of the region. Warm temperatures for an extended period last week have likely had a stabilizing effect on these buried weak layers.
