The snow keeps stacking up! Continued snowfall and wind will create a reactive storm slab in the Alpine and exposed areas at treeline.
The best snow quality still exists in wind sheltered areas.
With all the new snow expect to find heavy sluffing in steep terrain. Be mindful of what your sluff is doing around you, especially above terrain traps or areas you don't want to be pushed around in.
Steady snowfall this past week has left plenty of snow available for transport. Moderate/strong gusty winds will continue to refresh these slabs. This avalanche problem will be most reactive in the alpine and exposed areas at tree line.
Reports have been trickling in of wind effect and shooting cracks in alpine terrain.
There was a skier triggered wind slab below the Asulkan hut on thursday afternoon. The slab was 30-50cms deep and 40m wide.
The operations around us are also reporting a mix of wind slab and stormslabs as well as sluffing in steep terrain.
Recent stormy weather has deposited a meter of new snow over the last week. Mod to strong S/SW winds formed a reactive wind slab in specific features (ridge lee areas, open cross-loaded slopes, convex rolls).
A persistent weak layer is down 90-120cm. This interface is breaking down, but consists of surface hoar in sheltered locations, and a sun crust on solar aspects. The snowpack's base is comprised of several early-season melt-freeze rain crusts
Another storm will bring snow to Roger's Pass on Saturday.
Tonight Isolated flurries, trace amounts, Alp low -8°C, South winds 30 km/h, freezing level (FZL) at valley bottom.
Sat Flurries, 11cm, Alp High -6°C, SW winds 25km/h, FZL 1300m
Sun Flurries, Trace snowfall, Alp High -6°C, winds light SE, FZL 1100m.
Mon Sun/cloud/flurries, trace snow, Alp High -7°C, light wind gusting 30km/h, FZL 800m.
