Avalanche conditions are expected to improve as cooler temperatures follow the wet weekend storm.
Proceed cautiously, the status of buried weak layers is uncertain.
A cooling trend should stabilize moist or wet storm snow. Dry snow at upper elevations may remain reactive to rider triggers especially where it's been affected by wind.
Multiple weak layers are present between roughly 80 and 180 cm deep. With any luck, the heavy wet snow from the weekend will have cleaned out start zones of these problems. For now, the reality is uncertain.
Observations have been limited by poor visibility. Preliminary observations from the storm over the weekend include:
A natural loose wet cycle size 2-2.5 up to 2100 m.
A natural storm and/or wet slab cycle in the alpine and treeline; size 1-2 observed visually, and numerous audibles suspected to be very large.
Rider-triggered slabs propagated easily in small features, size 1-1.5. Most ran within the recent storm snow, two on the February weak layer.
Dry, low density snow falls ontop of 20 to 50 cm of heavy, moist snow from the weekend. At upper elevations, the recent snow has been affected by previous strong wind. Below 1800 m, a crust is forming over a wet upper snowpack.
Three problematic layers persist in the mid-snowpack.
One or two surface hoar layers buried in February are found 60 to 120 cm below the surface, and in some areas these sit on a thin crust.
A deeper, widespread layer buried in late January, made up of surface hoar, facets, and/or a crust, is buried 100 to 180 cm deep. Surface hoar within this layer is most preserved and largest in sheltered terrain at treeline and below.
Sunday Night
Mostly cloudy. 2 to 10 cm of snow. 40 km/h west ridgetop wind. Treeline temperature -9 °C.
Monday
Mix of sun and clouds. 2 to 10 cm of snow. 30 km/h west ridgetop wind. Treeline temperature -11 °C.
Tuesday
Mix of sun and clouds. 2 to 5 cm of snow. 30 km/h west ridgetop wind. Treeline temperature -11 °C.
Wednesday
Mostly cloudy. 5 to 10 cm of snow. 40 km/h southwest ridgetop wind. Treeline temperature -9 °C.
More details can be found in the Mountain Weather Forecast.
