With new snowfall and shifting wind, small pockets of reactive wind slabs will develop.
Use caution in lee areas at treeline and above.
Shifting wind and new snowfall will create fresh wind slabs on leeward terrain and cross-loaded features. Human-triggered are likely near ridge crests and roll-overs in the alpine.
A preserved layer of surface hoar is found down 40 to 70 cm. Although the likelihood of triggering it is unlikely, keep using caution at higher elevations, where the rain crust above the weak layer is thinner or breakable.
A few small loose wet avalanches were naturally triggered on steep slopes Thursday. No recent persistent slab avalanche activity has been reported in the last week. If you go out in the backcountry, please consider sharing your observations on the Mountain Information Network (MIN).
In sheltered locations at higher elevations, 10-20 cm of settled snow overlies a surface hoar layer. Surface snow is moist from 1900 m and below where a breakable crust is present near the surface. A prominent rain crust is found 40 to 70 cm deep, which is strong enough to cap another preserved layer of surface hoar found in most areas. Professionals are reporting that this weak layer is either decomposing or gaining strength, as there have not been significant results on this layer during tests recently. Typical snowpack depths at treeline are 70 to 110 cm, and taper rapidly below treeline.
Friday Night
Cloudy with up to 10 cm of snow, alpine wind northwest 40 to 60 km/h, treeline temperature -6° C, freezing level dropping to valley bottom.
Saturday
Mix of sun and clouds with no precipitation, alpine wind northwest 30 to 40 km/h, treeline temperature -8° C.
Sunday
Cloudy with sunny periods with no precipitation, alpine wind west 20 to 30 km/h, treeline temperature -6° C.
Monday
Cloudy with sunny periods with no precipitation, alpine wind southwest 20 to 30 km/h, treeline temperature -7° C.
More details can be found in the Mountain Weather Forecast.
