Isolated wind slabs may still react to a skier's passage, although the trend is toward stabilization. Carefully assess steep slopes in alpine terrain and at the tree line before committing to them.
In alpine terrain and at the tree line, there are wind slabs measuring 20 to 50 cm that may still react to the passage of a skier. They are mainly located below ridges, convexities, breaks in the terrain, and in areas loaded laterally at the tree line. However, the general trend is for these slabs to stabilize.
No new avalanches reported or observed.
If you head into the backcountry, thanks for sharing your observations on the Mountain Information Network (MIN).
In the alpine and at the tree line, snow cover varies greatly from place to place: the western slopes are mostly bare, while the other slopes have a mix of hard snow and pockets of softer wind slabs.
In areas protected from the wind, 20 to 25 cm of powder snow covers a gradually denser snowpack up to a crust formed on December 20. Under this crust, there is depth hoar and faceted grains.
A thin, brittle layer of rime ice formed at the beginning of the week is now found on the surface east of our forecast area. It does not affect ski quality. In addition, a thin, brittle sun crust is observed on steep south- and southwest-facing slopes.
The average snowpack depth at mid-mountain is approximately 120 cm.
WEATHER FOR THE CHIC-CHOCS RIDGES AND PEAKS
Residual effects of a weak low-pressure system, with generally cloudy skies, cold temperatures, and a chance of light flurries.
Thursday evening and overnight: Partly cloudy. Winds 12 to 18 mph from the northwest. Low -21.
Friday: Sunny. Wind from the south 10 to 20 km/h. High -11°C.
Saturday: Cloudy. Wind from the north 10 to 20 km/h. High -8.
Sunday: Cloudy. Wind from the northwest 10 to 30 km/h. High -13.
For more details, see the Chic-Chocs alpine weather forecast.
