New snow will soften riding conditions but increase the potential of triggering an avalanche.
New snow and strong southwest wind will load lee terrain features, forming new wind slabs. These slabs may start thin but could be touchy, particularly where they sit on a hard and smooth melt-freeze crust.
THURSDAY NIGHT: Cloudy with snowfall, accumulation 5 to 10 cm, 30 km/h west wind, treeline temperature -3 C, freezing level 500 m.
FRIDAY: Cloudy with snowfall, accumulation 5 to 10 cm, 60 km/h southwest wind, treeline temperature -2 C, freezing level 700 m.
SATURDAY: Cloudy with snowfall, accumulation 15 to 30 cm, 50 km/h southeast wind, treeline temperature -2 C.
SUNDAY: Cloudy with early-morning snowfall then clearing, accumulation 10 to 20 cm, 30 km/h southwest wind, treeline temperature -3 C.
No recent avalanches were reported. Looking forward, new slabs are expected to progressively form as the snow accumulates. The slabs may be easy to trigger if the snow doesn't bond well to the hard melt-freeze crust.
Around 10 to 20 cm of new snow will fall with strong southwest wind, forming new wind slabs in exposed terrain. The snow will fall onto a widespread hard melt-freeze crust found across the region. The crust is thickest at low elevations and on sun-exposed slopes. The crust may not exist on high alpine terrain on north aspects. The new snow may not bond well to this crust.
The remainder of the snowpack is well-bonded.
