Storm slabs near WMR

Traveled at mid-elevations near the boundaries of WMR and found reactive storm slabs on specific terrain features.  We kept to mellow terrain with short, steep pitches to manage the problem. 

• About a foot of dense new snow over the 12/31 freezing rain crust, with drifts up to 16" where we traveled.  
• We intentionally skier triggered about 5 storm slabs that all broke on precip particles above the rain crust.  The slabs did not propagate widely in wind-sheltered terrain; they behaved similarly to sluffs and needed to be on slopes steeper than about 40 degrees.  In areas where the winds had stiffened the slabs, they broke wider and on slightly mellower slope angles.  All of these slides were small (D1) in size because they were on small terrain features, but they would have been large enough to injure or bury someone in bigger terrain or in a terrain trap.  
• We noted one natural avalanche that ran from the Skook Chutes and crossed the upper of the two roads in the Canyon.  
• Heavy snowfall rates peaked late morning and tapered through the afternoon. There were moderate winds near ridgetop with light transport.