Northwest Coastal

Spring conditions. Localised storm slabs may develop this weekend.

As temperatures gradually cool through the weekend, loose wet and wet slab avalanches will become less likely. Storm slabs may develop in the alpine as the cold front passes through. At lower elevations, monitor the overnight freeze of the snow surface. If the snow surface does not freeze overnight or if the crust is thin or breakable, daytime heating or rain will weaken the snowpack much more quickly than if there is a well frozen thick crust. Low elevation and thin snowpack areas are isothermal.

A cold front is expected to pass through tonight, with showers lingering on Sunday. The front brings 10-20 cm snow and moderate SW winds, which switch to NW behind the front. The freezing level should fall to valley floor by Sunday morning. Skies start to clear on Monday, although low cloud may linger in the valleys.

No recent avalanches have been reported. A couple of large wet slab avalanches were observed in the NW Inland area. Most operators have shut down for the season. Please continue to share your backcountry observations through the Mountain Information Network.