Watch for buried wind slabs on all aspects at higher elevations. Dig and explore the slab properties often as there is a lot of variability in the region's snowpack.
Wind slabs (now buried by up to 15cm of recent snow) are widespread. In steep and unsupported terrain, they could be sensitive to human triggering.
Recent avalanches have stepped down to this layer triggerring large avalanches.
Tuesday will be mainly sunny with light NW winds. Cold temperatures overnight with a daytime high near -11 at Treeline. Wednesday may bring some light flurries, but accumulations will be minimal.
Isolated loose dry avalanches up to size 1 were observed in steeper Alpine terrain on N and E aspects.
Up to 15cm of recent snow overlies a variety of previous surfaces. This surface snow is soft and fluffy in some areas, and wind affected in others, especially as you transition to the Alpine. Extensive wind slabs were formed in the pre-Christmas storm, and it is worth noting that the storm arrived with extreme Northerly winds, which switched to extreme SW winds in the following days. Therefore, the region has buried wind slabs on virtually all aspects. The depth and character of these slabs is highly variable, and it is worth a dig before committing to more aggressive terrain. Forecasters are still tracking the Dec 8th layer (surface hoar, facets, crust) now down 40 to 80cm, but this layer has been inactive in recent days. The November rain crust is also worth keeping an eye on, as it has been responsible for a few recent large avalanches.
