Brandywine

Watch for wind slabs at upper elevations and in extreme terrain.

Continue to verify conditions in your area and practice good travel habits.

A few small wind slab avalanches were triggered in alpine terrain on Tuesday. Triggering wind slabs is becoming unlikely, except in extreme alpine terrain.

Due to shifting wind at upper elevations, the surface snow has likely been changed by the wind. However, cold temperatures are helping to facet or soften slabs that were formed. Riding quality is generally good in sheltered areas as the cold has kept the surface soft. There may be a thin melt-freeze sun crust on steep solar aspects.

A weak layer that was buried at the end of January is down 30 to 80 cm in the snowpack. Depending on where you are, it'll be a combo of different crystals. With crusts on sunny slopes, sugary facets in most places, and surface hoar in sheltered spots.

The mid and lower snowpack is strong and bonded.

Thursday Night

Partly cloudy. 10 km/h north ridgetop wind. Treeline temperature -9 °C.

Friday

A mix of sun and cloud. 10 to 20 km/h west ridgetop wind. Treeline temperature -8 °C.

Saturday

Cloudy with up to 5 cm of snow. 20 km/h southeast ridgetop wind. Treeline temperature -7 °C.

Sunday

Cloudy with 5 cm of snow. 10 to 20 km/h southwest ridgetop wind. Treeline temperature -4 °C.

More details can be found in the Mountain Weather Forecast.

• The snowpack is generally stable; it may be appropriate to step out into more complex terrain.
• Carefully evaluate steep lines for wind slabs.