Choose mellow slopes. An ongoing storm is increasing avalanche danger.
Check how much new snow you are finding over the crust. Snowfall amounts are expected to vary across the island.
New snow and strong to extreme southwesterly winds will build reactive storm slabs. Expect these slabs to be deeper and more likely to avalanche on west through north facing (leeward) slopes.
Another 15 to 50 cm of new snow is expected to fall by the end of the day on Wednesday. This should fall on settling dry or moist snow in most places. Strong to extreme southwest winds overnight are expected to make deeper, more reactive slabs in leeward terrain.
RIght up to mountain tops, a widespread, thick and hard crust is now expected to be buried by 30-60 cm of snow.
The snowpack below the crust is strong and bonded with no layers of concern.
No recent avalanches have been reported, but the ongoing storm is expected to increase the likelihood of avalanches for Wednesday.
If you are heading into the backcountry, consider sharing your observations and posting a MIN.
Tuesday Night
Cloudy. 10 to 20 cm of snow, hotspots of 25 to 30 cm. 60 km/h southwest ridgetop wind, decreasing by the early morning. Treeline temperature -2 °C. Freezing level 900 m.
Wednesday
Mostly cloudy. 5 to 10 cm of snow, hotspots of 15-20cm. 25-45 km/h southwest ridgetop wind. Treeline temperature -4 °C.
Thursday
Mostly cloudy. 4 to 20 cm of snow. 40 km/h southwest ridgetop wind. Treeline temperature -4 °C.
Friday
Mostly cloudy. 3 to 5 cm of snow. 30 km/h southwest ridgetop wind. Treeline temperature -2 °C. Freezing level 1000 m.
More details can be found in the Mountain Weather Forecast.
