Blizzard conditions will continue on Saturday which will not help with travel above treeline and will definitely increase the size of wind slabs.
Significant new wind slabs are likely to occur on leeward slopes and in cross loaded locations of the alpine and treeline. They may rest on other unstable slabs.
With the cold temperatures, facetted grains developed on and under the January 18 ice crust. We have been getting regular test results showing avalanche triggering potential for the past few days. As with any persistent slab problem, the problem is very sporadic, almost isolated and the spatial variability is significant. It is therefore possible to test a few meters away and get a completely different results on this crust. The probabilities of triggering are low, but the consequences could be very unfortunate. The problem seems to be a little more important at the treeline, where the snowpack is thinner, near natural obstacles, such as trees or rocks.
On the Albert area Thursday, several avalanches were reported on north and northeast slopes. They all released within an interface of overlying wind slabs, from the previous couple of days. See the MIN reports for more information.
Three natural avalanches of size 0.5 to 1.
One size 2 avalanche was accidentally triggered by a skier.
Our team ski cutted a size 1.5.
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About 15 to 20 cm of new snow was added to the 15 to 20 cm of very low density snow already present on the January 18 crust or on a slightly denser layer covering the latter. With the extreme westerly wind, much of this snow was moved into the alpine and treeline areas, forming new wind slabs.
A great deal of spatial variability is present in the alpine and at the treeline, from wind slabs to wind-affected snow to ice or rock.Facetted grains have developed on and under the January 18 crust, with more and more test results showing reactivity on this crust.In general, the height of the snowpack varies from 70 to 90 cm in the valley to 100 to 150 cm at mid-mountain.
Forecast for the Chic-Chocs ridges and summits.
Synopsis: The combination of an arctic air mass, a low pressure system and extreme westerly winds will cause blowing snow until Saturday night. The wind will diminish on Sunday morning.
Friday night and overnight: Blowing snow. 2 cm of snow. Wind northwest 50 to 100 km/h. Low -33.
Saturday: Blowing snow. 1 cm of snow. Wind northwest 50 to 100 km/h. High -27.
Sunday: Mix of sun and clouds. Wind southwest 20 to 40 km/h. High -17.
Monday: Sunny spells. Wind northwest 20 to 40 km/h. High -14.
For more details, check the Alpine Weather Forecast.
