Lawinenlagebericht

Sawtooth & Western Smoky Mtns

Sawtooth Avalanche Center
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Lawinengefahr

Sun
Hochgebirge
2 · Mässig
Waldgrenze
1 · Gering
Unterhalb
1 · Gering
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Veraltet — dieser Lagebericht ist 6 years ago abgelaufen. Du siehst vergangene Verhältnisse, nicht den aktuellen Bericht.

Kernpunkte

Today's storm will bring new snow and strong winds. Wind drifts are likely to form at upper elevations, becoming larger as the day progresses. There's a good chance that your weight will trigger one of these slabs—avoid slopes where you find drifted or pillowed snow. Continued snowfall will lead to increasing avalanche danger in the coming days—be prepared to scale back your terrain choices.

Lawinenprobleme

  • Wind Slabs

    • Hochgebirge
    • Waldgrenze
    • Unterhalb der Waldgrenze
    Wahrscheinlichkeit
    Likely
    Größe
    1

    Today's forecast is calling for 5-7 inches of new snow accompanied by strong southerly winds. Going back to Avalanches 101: new snow + wind = wind slab avalanches. Wind drifts will build through the day along higher elevation ridges and in open terrain—by the afternoon, these wind slabs could be 12 or more inches thick. What's more, these wind drifts will be forming on weak, faceted snow surfaces that formed during the recent dry weather. So while these fresh wind drifts might not be that big today, they may be extra touchy and easily triggered by your weight. 

    After a long period of relatively stable conditions, it's time to get our heads back in the game. Today will be a good day to begin scaling back your terrain choices by planning to avoid steep, upper elevation, wind-exposed terrain. With snowfall continuing overnight and into tomorrow, expect avalanche conditions to become increasingly dangerous over the next few days.

Avalanche Discussion

At the risk of jinxing things, I'm going out on a limb and saying that today will be the start of a brave new world. One in which we actually get snowfall measured in more than a few inches, and where avalanche forecasters have a job to do. I think most of us are ready for some late season powder, but are you ready to get off the bench and be thrown back into the avalanche game? If you're saying "put me in coach", read on.

One of the most important questions to ask when it finally snows after a prolonged dry spell is "what is the snow falling on?" Our current snowpack surface runs the full gamut, but weak surfaces are common—especially on shadier aspects facing NE-N-NW. Last weekend's snowfall has since turned to sugary, near-surface facets. These are now sitting on firm bed surfaces on many slopes or have been added to a full-depth weak snowpack in shallow areas. We have plenty of weak snow, the only missing ingredient for avalanche conditions being a slab. New and windblown snow from today and tomorrow's storm will begin to fill in this blank in our avalanche recipe, and will likely lead to dangerous avalanche conditions in the coming days.

A shifting mindset will be critical to adjust to the changing conditions. Over the past few weeks, we've been able to ski and ride in steep terrain with relatively little risk. That's going to change. Conditions may not become that dangerous today, but it will be a good day to start stepping back from the terrain you may have been recreating in. That will get you started in the right direction as even more conservative terrain choices become necessary in the coming days.

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