The avalanche cycle continues. Avoid avalanche terrain and be mindful of overhead hazard as the potential exists for avalanches to run long distances. Good skiing in sheltered areas.
Wind slabs are everywhere in the Alpine and in lee and cross-loaded terrain at Treeline. Human triggering is very likely.
Cornices are large and fragile. If triggered, a cornice failure may trigger a wind slab or a deep persistent slab on the slopes below.
With the recent loading, this layer may become more active. Triggering is more likely is shallow snowpack areas.
25cm of new snow in the past 24 hours. This new snow sluffs easily with ski cutting in steep terrain below treeline. This weeks storm snow is settling slightly but now totals between 60 and 80cm at Treeline elevations. Alpine areas are dominated by widespread wind slabs, and Treeline zones have significant slab conditions in lee and cross-loaded terrain. These slabs have been failing naturally and are very sensitive to human triggering in steep, convex and/or unsupported terrain.
Another 10cm is possible through Saturday night before a slight clearing trend Sunday morning. Flurries will move back in on Sunday afternoon. Temperatures should reach about -11 in the Alpine with moderate SW winds. Monday should be mainly sunny.
A natural avalanche cycle is ongoing, but very poor visibility is making it difficult to get a sense of the scale of the cycle. Ski cutting in terrain at lower elevations is producing size 1.0 sluffs that are starting to get enough mass to push a person into a terrain trap such as a tree well or a gully.
