North Rockies

Recent strong winds have formed fresh wind slabs which will likely remain reactive to riders. Watch for wind slabs on leeward terrain features at upper elevations.

On Thursday and Friday, observers reported evidence of wind slab activity, suspected to have run mid-week, size 1-2 on north through east-facing aspects.

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

Recent snow and strong winds have buried a crust formed in mid-February up to 90 cm deep. This crust is expected to be most widespread and thickest at treeline and below, becoming thinner or absent at higher elevations. Weak, faceted snow may exist above the crust, or in place of the crust at higher elevations.

The remainder of the snowpack is generally well consolidated, with no widespread layers of concern. The main exception is shallow, rocky terrain, where the snowpack is inherently weaker and early-season basal weak layers may still persist.

Check out these recent MIN posts from our field team on Thursday and a local pro on Friday.

Saturday Night
Mostly cloudy. 4 cm of snow. 80 km/h west ridgetop wind. Treeline temperature -3 °C. Freezing level dropping 1800 m to valley bottom.

Sunday
Mix of sun and clouds. 1 cm of snow. 50 km/h west ridgetop wind. Treeline temperature -9 °C.

Monday
Mostly sunny. 2 cm of snow. 40 km/h west ridgetop wind. Treeline temperature -10 °C.

Tuesday
Mostly sunny. 1 cm of snow. 40 km/h southwest ridgetop wind. Treeline temperature -10 °C.

More details can be found in the Mountain Weather Forecast.

• Be careful as you transition into wind-affected terrain.
• Avoid freshly wind-loaded features, especially near ridge crests, rollovers, and in steep terrain.
• Avoid steep terrain, including convex rolls, or areas with a thin, rocky, or variable snowpack.