Northwest Inland

A bit of new snow and shifting winds from southwest to northwest may form small wind slabs on steep lee features in the alpine.

Small wet loose avalanches may run long distances in steep terrain.

SUNDAY NIGHT: Cloudy with flurries; 3-5 cm / Light, northwest wind / Low of -6 / Freezing level valley bottom.

MONDAY: Mix of sun and cloud / Strong, northwest wind / High of -2 / Freezing level 700 m.

TUESDAY: Increasing cloudiness with isolated flurries; 0-3 cm / Extreme, northwest wind / High of -3 / Freezing level 600 m.

WEDNESDAY: Cloudy with flurries; 3-5 cm / Strong, northwest wind / High of 1 / Freezing level 1100 m.

A size 2 natural cornice failure was reported on Saturday. The cornice did not trigger a slab avalanche on the slope below.

5-10 cm of wind-pressed snow overlies a thick (10-15 cm) rain crust that extends to mountain tops. This crust has created challenging travel conditions and a "slide-for-life" hazard on steep slopes.

Small wind slabs may be found on lee features in the alpine. 

The weak layers in the snowpack (such as the crust or surface hoar layers down around 100 cm) are unlikely to human trigger in areas where a hard surface crust is present. If the surface crust is warmed up and breaks down, triggering persistent slab avalanches becomes more likely.

However, cornices overhead are a primary concern during sunny, warm, or windy conditions. Cornice failures may trigger very large persistent slab avalanches that would otherwise be difficult to human trigger.

• Carefully evaluate steep lines for wind slabs.
• Wind slabs may be poorly bonded to the underlying crust.
• Loose avalanches may start small but they can grow and push you into dangerous terrain.
• Avoid exposure to slopes that have cornices overhead.
• Cornice failures could trigger very large and destructive avalanches.