East Slopes Central

In many areas the most significant hazard may be slick, icy surfaces, so bring equipment to prevent uncontrollable slides and choose your routes with surface conditions in mind. On the higher peaks near the crest, you could find shallow wind slabs to be mindful of. Slopes that receive direct sun may soften during the day.

Recent weather has kept the crest shrouded in clouds, and areas further east in the sun. The high mountains near the far western edge of the zone have picked up a few inches of snow over the past few days. Gusty winds with this trickle in of new snow may have created drifts near ridgelines and in open-exposed alpine terrain on the higher peaks. Be on the lookout for these as you gain elevation, and check for cracking in the snow before committing to unsupported or consequential terrain. A strong frontal system should arrive by Saturday afternoon, and we expect the avalanche danger to increase substantially overnight into Sunday.

For most areas, challenging travel conditions on icy surfaces will be the main hazard. Observers have reported glazed over wind board, and bulletproof surfaces on high, north facing terrain. Slide for life conditions may be encountered in these places, so sharp tools like crampons and an ice axe may be necessary for travel in some areas. Corn snow has been found on sunny slopes by mid-day, making south-facing slopes the favored places to travel in the zone recently, on skis at least.

In some locations near the crest, weak faceted snow may exist above or beneath a crust from late January. Forecaster Irene Henninger found this weak structure near Holden about 5cm below the surface. Additional snow on top of this crust-facet combination, or very slick crusts may create a persistent slab problem moving forward. Dig down, or document these layers while they're near the surface if you travel on shaded upper elevation terrain. Let us know what you find, so we can better track changing conditions with active weather on the return this weekend.