Human triggered avalanches are still possible and if the sun comes out, watch out for natural activity.
Expect conditions to vary greatly with elevation and aspect.
Two persistent layers are the main concern in the snowpack. One down ~30cm which, if triggered, could step down to the layer deeper in the snowpack. In areas with a robust crust, this is less likely of a concern.
Avalanche activity has decreased with cooler temperatures and cloud cover.
A widespread natural avalanche cycle of size 3-3.5 occurred last week. These wet avalanches failed within the moist upper snowpack and stepped down to the persistent weak layer (over 1m deep).
A field team investigated a natural, size 3 avalanche that occurred on Mar 18th, on a N aspect at tree-line. The failure plane was down ~120 cm on the Feb 3rd persistent weak layer.
New snow buried a crust found on most aspects and elevations, except treeline and above on polar slopes. Rain created a crust below treeline, which will freeze & thaw with diurnal temperature fluctuations.
A weak layer formed on March 9th is down ~30cm. It has been preserved on N aspects at treeline and above.
The Feb 03 crust is down 80-140 cm and a weak layer of loose snow sits above it.
A fairly benign weather pattern brings a mix of sun & cloud with cooler temps and very little precip.
Tonight: Trace precip, Alp Low: -8, Light E winds, Freezing level (fz): Valley Bottom
Sat: Mix of sun & cloud, Alp High: -4, Light E winds, fz level: 1600 m
Sun: Sunny w/ cloudy periods, Alp High: -8, Light E winds. Fz level 1000m
Mon: Cloudy/sunny periods, Alp High: -2, Light E winds, fz level 1800m
