A strong upslope storm has delivered heavy snowfall to the East and built windslabs in unusual places.
Strong winds and heavy snowfall (heaviest in the front ranges) has built fresh slabs on most aspects. Be particularly cautious on planar slopes where the new snow overlies a crust.
Loading from new snow has likely increased the sensitivity of this layer.
The low pressure center that drove Saturdays upslope moves into the prairies allowing cool air from the North East to establish itself over our area.
Sunday: Clear periods in the AM, with increasing cloud and flurries in the PM. Treeline temperature: Low -11 C, High -6 C. Ridge wind light northeast (gusting moderate). Freezing level: 1500 metres.
A strong upslope has delivered over 30cm of snow in the front ranges, and up to 20cm in the Icefields region. This new snow is being reverse loaded by NE winds and will overly several crusts/facet layers in the upper snowpack. Windslabs can be expected on most aspects in the alpine. A faceted layer midpack on shady alpine aspects remains a concern.
Poor visibility today, expect an avalanche cycle is ongoing with heavy loading from new snow and wind.
