Large cornices may fail under the weight of a human. Give them a wide berth when travelling on ridges and watch for signs that they may be weakening with extended sun exposure.
Check out this new blog if you are planning bigger objectives this weekend.
Cornices have grown large recently but are generally not expected to fail naturally with the current cold conditions. However, human-triggered cornices are possible so give them a wide berth when travelling on ridges and watch for signs that they may be weakening if they are exposed to extended periods of sun.
Thursday night: Partly cloudy, light east wind, treeline low around -15 °C.
Friday: A mix of sun and cloud, light variable wind, treeline high around -6 °C.
Saturday: Mainly sunny in the morning, a mix of sun and cloud in the afternoon, light east wind, treeline high around -3 °C.
Sunday: Mainly cloudy with flurries and sunny breaks, light to moderate west wind, treeline high around -2 °C.
No new avalanches were observed on Wednesday.
Observations are limited this time of year. If you are getting out in the backcountry, please consider contributing to the Mountain Information Network.
10-20 cm of snow sits over a widespread melt-freeze crust which formed during the major warming event on April 8. Periods of strong wind from the northeast through southeast on Monday and Tuesday have redistributed the recent snowfall in exposed high elevation terrain forming wind slabs which are now expected to have stabilized in most areas. Cornices have likely grown large recently but are expected to be relatively stable with the current cold temperatures. A new sun crust may now be forming on steep sun-exposed slopes.
Multiple crusts exist in the upper snowpack which are currently considered stable and well bonded with the ongoing cold conditions. The middle and lower snowpack are currently well settled and strong.
