While our snowpack may feel "settled, positive, or supportive," this consolidated nature of the upper and mid snowpack represents slab properties which is actually cause for concern positioned over the weak basal layers.
Avoid steep or planar alpine or tree line features as these basal layers remain possible to trigger.
The bottom of the snowpack is weak, comprising facets and depth hoar while the recent warm temperatures and winds have promoted the development of slab properties in the mid and upper snowpack. Trusting this inherently unstable snowpack structure in terrain with any consequence is a poor idea.
On Saturday, a group of two on Observation Peak triggered and got caught by, a sz 2 slab that scrubbed the track to the ground.
On Wednesday, a group near Helen Shoulder remote triggered (from 30 m) a size 2 avalanche on the deep persistent layer.
Trace amounts of new snow bury surface hoar below treeline and sun crusts on steep solar slopes treeline and above. Wind effect and old, hard-slab are found TL and above. A temperature crust from just before Christmas is now buried 10-20 cm below 1900m.
The mid-pack contains a rain crust which can be found as high as 2300m in southern areas.
The basal third of the snowpack consists of a mix of weak facets and depth hoar.
Treeline snow depths range from 60-100 cm.
A weak ridge forms overnight Sunday while isolated flurries persist and light winds shift West. Temperatures drop to below -10C in the alpine.
Pacific moisture will approach the Rockies Monday. Flurries developing in the afternoon are about all that is expected with winds shifting to NW and increasing moderate to strong. Temperatures rise slightly.
For more information, click Mountain Weather Forecast.
