The wind is the big story - there are fresh windslabs all over the place at treeline and in the alpine and these could be triggered easily. Ice climbers below treeline should avoid confined gullies as avalanches from above could run far on facets.
Strong SW wind has been loading lee areas in the alpine and tree line. This, coupled with an additional 10-20 cm and mild temperatures will create reactive windslabs in many areas.
A strong westerly flow is established over BC and AB, delivering warm, moist air across the region combined with strong winds. This pattern is forecast to continue through Wednesday, with another 5-10 cm and strong winds expected. Thursday looks to warm up even further before clearing and cooling on Friday.
10-20 cm of new snow combined with strong SW winds transporting snow is creating windslabs down into the treeline. These slabs are sitting on facets, today showed a moderate test results and could be easily skier triggered. Facetted snow from the cold snap left in the tracks of avalanche paths is making avalanches run further than normal.
No new avalanches observed or reported on Tuesday, but several avalanches reported by the Lake Louise ski hill on Monday.
