Expect firm conditions in the morning, potentially softening with sun and warm temperatures throughout the day. Wet avalanches become more likely on south facing slopes as the surface crust breaks down, and snow becomes wet and heavy.
Warm temperatures and sun throughout the day may soften the surface crust and weaken the upper snowpack.
Pay close attention to how thick and supportive the surface crust is throughout the day. Minimize your exposure to slopes with wet and heavy snow.
FRIDAY NIGHT: Freezing level around 1000 m, no significant snowfall expected, light southwest wind.
SATURDAY: Scattered cloud with some clearing in the early evening, no significant snowfall expected, light variable wind, freezing level around 1800 m.
SUNDAY: A few clouds at dawn building to overcast by lunch, a few cm of snow possible, moderate southwest wind, freezing level around 1800 m. 4 to 10 cm possible Sunday night.
MONDAY: Overcast, 8 to 20 cm of snow possible, strong southwest wind, freezing level around 1900 m.
No new avalanches have been reported since Tuesday, when natural wet avalanches were reported on steep sun affected slopes to size 1.
A good snapshot of the current conditions can be found in this MIN report from our field team. The upper snowpack is going through a daily melt-freeze cycle. A crust exists on all aspects to around 2500 m and likely to mountain top on sun affected slopes. Warm temperatures and sun are softening or breaking down the crust during the day and creating moist snow. At very low elevations, the snowpack may be wet and isothermal, depending on overnight freezing levels.
Below 1700 m, the snowpack has been reported as being moist to ground, and is becoming isothermal.
