Avalanche conditions appear to be improving, but be mindful a buried weak layer may persist within range of human triggering.
A layer of surface hoar is buried 60 to 100 cm deep. This layer may be triggerable by riders at upper elevations where it is not bridged by a thick overlying crust.
Recent avalanche activity in this region has been limited. A couple of size 1 wind slabs have been reported in the alpine.
If you go out in the backcountry, please consider sharing your observations on the Mountain Information Network (MIN).
5-10 cm of new snow falls on a well-settled upper snowpack.
The mid snowpack contains a couple of layers of note; a hard crust formed by an early December rain event around 60 cm deep and a layer of surface hoar 60 to 100 cm deep. Where it exists, the crust effectively bridges underlying weak layers, but the surface hoar remains a concern in areas that do not have the overlying crust.
The lower snowpack is variable throughout the region; in shallower snowpack areas, basal facets may exist.
Saturday night
Mostly cloudy with up to 5 cm of new snow, ridgetop wind 20 km/h southeast to southwest, treeline temperature -2 °C. Above freezing layer breaking down, freezing level dropping to 600 m.
Sunday
Mostly cloudy with 5-10 cm of new snow, ridgetop wind 20 km/h southwest, treeline temperature -2 °C.
Monday
Mostly cloudy, ridgetop wind 20-30 km/h southwest, treeline temperature -3 °C.
Tuesday
A mix of sun and cloud, ridgetop wind 20-30 km/h variable, treeline temperature -3 °C.
More details can be found in the Mountain Weather Forecast.
