Be on the lookout for new windslabs following Friday's storm.
While it may feel like spring at the lowest elevations, the alpine sure feels a lot like winter... We expect an "Cold and Snowy scenario" into the start of the week at least.
New slabs have formed following the passage of Friday's cold front and arrival of up to 20cm of new snow. New snow amounts are likely to vary significantly from one zone to another given the convective nature of storms at this time of the year.
Recovery from Friday's warming should continue overnight into Sunday as treeline temperatures drop as low as -18C. 5cm of snow is expected as unstable weather passes through the region and treeline temperatures climb to a peak of -5C. Winds out of the north peak late in the day around 30km/h. Cooler still for Monday and Tuesday...
Up to 20 cm of new snow fell with Friday's storm as temperatures dropped after a significant warm up. A thin surface crust over an isothermal snowpack was found at low elevations Saturday as temperatures cool. 10-30 cm of soft, dry snow sits on a firm crust on N aspects. On solar aspects a series of crusts exist in the snowpack at all elevations.
The ski hills both reported working with reactive, soft new windslabs 5-20cm thick. Lake Louise found these isolated to the alpine immediate lees while Sunshine reported wide propagations found slabs into treeline as well.
