Without much snow over the past week, the snowpack has continued to settle and gain strength. Generally, safe avalanche conditions exist across the Selkirk and Cabinet zones. Natural and human triggered avalanches are unlikely, but possible in isolated areas such as slopes that are wind loaded, above 35 degrees, and/or near ridgelines. These areas should be easy to avoid with some attentive terrain selection.
Expect to see Wind Slabs formed on SE-E-NE-N slopes above treeline and near ridges. Have a heightened awareness near and below open, steep and filled in looking slopes. Even though the avalanche danger is LOW, there are still pockets that can produce avalanches.
Yesterday, Ryan and I took the snowmobiles from Caribou Creek up to Hellroaring Ridge and checked conditions around Flattop Mountain. The lower elevation (3000’) snow was noticeably firmer on the surface and showed no signs of new snow from the past week. Coverage continues to be good in the valleys, but travel is tricky with the crust on the surface. As we moved up in elevation, the snow conditions improved, especially around treeline (5000’). The 6-8’’ of snow that fell a couple days ago is on top of the crust and makes traveling much easier. For the most part, the snow on top of the crust is still soft and is adhering well to the snow underneath.
Tom noted the presence of katabatic winds earlier this week at Schweitzer. Ryan and I noticed the same phenomenon while we were skiing uphill towards Flattop. Because katabatic winds change directions in the morning and evenings, you may encounter snow that has been transported multiple times, creating wind slabs in places they wouldn’t normally form. For the most part, we were surprised by the lack of snow transport at the top of Flattop, but we saw evidence of loading on leeward slopes on surrounding peaks. There was also a newly formed sun crust on the south face of Flattop that impacted the quality of our descent.
There is plenty of good snow out there! It might take a little investigative work right now, but this is a great time to use those backcountry skills to find it. Good luck sniffing out the pow! I’ll try to leave you some! ;)
Thanks for the snowpack observations over the weekend, please keep them coming! We’re particularly curious about the recently formed surface hoar and if additional surface hoar growth and other potential future weak layers develop in our surface snow from the clear, cold nights this week.
Friends of IPAC has a bunch of avalanche and safety courses coming up, find more information and view the schedule here. There’s something for everyone, from excellent Level 1 Refresher courses to a Level 2 and also Wilderness First Aid that’s tailored to winter backcountry users.
Backcountry users between 14 and 24 years of age can apply for a Level 1 Avalanche Course scholarship via the Doug Abromeit Scholarship, deadline February 13th, 2022!
