Use caution at all elevations. New snow and wind will likely form wind slab in exposed terrain and add to the slab forming above a buried surface hoar layer.
New snow accompanied by southwest wind will form wind slab on north and east aspects at treeline and above. Strong wind speeds mean that wind slab may be found further down slope than expected.
30 to 60 cm of previous storm snow is forming a slab over large surface hoar crystals. Surface hoar is more likely to be well preserved at treeline but could exist at all elevations.
No new avalanches have been reported in the past couple days.
If you do go into the backcountry, consider submitting a Mountain Information Network report.
Up to 10 cm of new snow accompanied by southerly wind will form wind slab on northerly aspects. This new snow will also bury another layer of surface hoar at 1200 m, below this elevation it will bury a crust. 30 to 60 cm of previous storm snow sits above a large layer of surface hoar. This layer likely exists on all aspects above 1200 m.
In general, the snowpack is still shallow for this time of year with snowpack depths at treeline ranging from 50 to 100 cm. Early season hazards are still a concern.
Check out this MIN from our field team.
Friday Night
Mostly cloudy with a couple centimeters of new snow expected, South alpine wind 20 to 40 km/h, treeline temperature -8°C.
Saturday
Mostly cloudy with 5 to 10 cm of new snow expected, southeast alpine wind 30 to 50 km/h, treeline temperature -1°C.
Sunday
A mix of sun and cloud with no new snow expected, west alpine wind 20 to 60 km/h, freezing level rising to 1400 m.
Monday
A mix of sun and cloud with no new snow expected, southwest alpine wind increasing to 40 to 60 km/h, freezing level falling to valley bottom.
More details can be found in the Mountain Weather Forecast.
