Start your day with a conservative mindset, and gather snowpack information as you travel. Be cautious around ridge crests, and back off if you find signs of instability like shooting cracks.
Recent snowfall and continual strong south to southwest wind have formed wind slabs in lee terrain features. These windslabs vary in depth, up to 60 cm thick in some places.
So far, these slabs seem to have bonded well to the old surface, but large features that have been filled in by wind transport may still avalanche under the weight of a rider.
THURSDAY NIGHT: Increasing cloud, becoming mostly cloudy. No new snow expected. Strong southwest wind. Alpine temperatures around -12 °C.
FRIDAY: Mostly cloudy. 0-7 cm of snow expected. Strong to extreme southwest wind. Alpine high around -7 °C.
SATURDAY: Mostly cloudy. 0-10 cm of snow expected. Strong southwest wind. Freezing level rising to around 500 m.
SUNDAY: Partly cloudy. Possible trace of snow expected. Light northwest wind. Freezing level falls to valley bottom. Alpine high around -7 °C.
No new avalanches were reported before 4 pm on Thursday. Limited field observations so far have suggested that the windslabs formed earlier in the week are not likely to be triggered by the weight of a rider. Rider triggered avalanches may still be possible in large terrain features that have seen significant wind-loading.
Expect to find a breakable crust up to 1100 m, 1200 m on solar aspects. This has made travel a little tricky, but still manageable.
Above this elevation, consistent strong to extreme south to southwest wind has formed 30-60 cm thick windslabs in lee features. These windslabs may be a little upside-down, but so far, they have not been reactive to rider traffic.
The mid snowpack is generally dense and strong.
In shallow snowpack areas, a layer of loose facets can be found at the bottom of the snowpack.
