It snowed about 2 cm two days ago, so on Wednesday, with two friends visiting from the US, we went to have a look at the North Side of the Mont Gelee. Sure enough, the Couloirs had caught some of the snow and pushed it up on to the right side. It was kind of like surfing a right hand wave on skis. When it hasn't snowed in three weeks anything is good! The clouds have been blowing through and it FEELS like something is going to happen but, the buzz from the local patrolers is not as positive as I'd like to be.

Avalanche Danger Scale
High Alpine	1–Low
Mid mountain	1–Low
Treeline	1–Low

Current conditions:

A little cloudy, pretty warm and no precipitation.

Snow Depth:

Ø 1500m - 25 cm
Ø 2200m - 110 cm
Ø 2950m - 102 cm

Snow Conditions:

Snow conditions are hard but south facing slopes are turning to spring corn in the afternoon. Some of the slopes that are facing south are turning rotten. With the sun gone the mid mountain is not softening up, so it's getting harder and harder to ski off-piste. The high alpine north facing slopes are still "skiable".

Off-piste Travel Conditions:

The Avalanche danger is low but the chance of wet slides is high. These move quite slowly but are still dangerous to the unaware.

" Completely apart from the time of day, full depth snowslides continue to be expected in all regions. Open glide cracks are indicators of this hazard. Lingering beneath such glide cracks should be avoided whenever possible. In all regions, wet avalanches and full depth snowslides can, in isolated cases, place exposed sections of transportation routes, e.g. ski runs and pass roads, at risk.
The danger of dry avalanches is "low" (Level 1). Isolated avalanche prone locations are found in extremely steep gullies and bowls with snowdrift in particular.” SLF.ch

Forecast:

A little snow on Saturday. Sunny and warm on Sunday.


Important Notice:
Snowpack formation and stability will vary as you travel throughout the mountains. It is, therefore, the responsibility of the backcountry traveler to be self-sufficient in being able to perform self-rescue should you, the traveler, be involved in an accident. Also, backcountry travelers are responsible for obtaining their own information concerning current weather conditions, snow, winds, snowfall, etc. and are responsible for educating themselves to the best possible awareness level.

Condition Key

Extreme: Wide spread areas of unstable snow exist and avalanches are certain on some slopes. Backcountry travel should be avoided.

High: Mostly unstable snow exists on a variety of aspects and slope angles. Natural avalanches are likely. Travel in avalanche terrain is not recommended.

Considerable: Dangerous unstable slabs exist on steep terrain on certain aspects. Human triggered avalanches probable. Natural avalanches possible.

Moderate: Areas of unstable snow exist. Human triggered avalanches are possible. Larger triggers may be necessary as the snowpack becomes more stable. Use caution.

Low: Mostly stable snow exists. Avalanches are unlikely except in isolated pockets.

Useful links

www.slf.ch

www.televerbier.ch