Lawinenlagebericht Turnagain Pass and Girdwood

There is a chance of triggering an avalanche 1 to 2’ deep on a layer of weak faceted snow that was buried at all elevations. These may be larger in the Girdwood Valley where more snow fell on a weaker snowpack. Lower elevations may become increasingly unstable in the afternoon as temperatures warm up. Dry and wet loose avalanches are possible depending on aspect and elevation.

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SPECIAL ANNOUNCEMENTS:

PFD PSA: For the procrastinators in the crowd.... The PFD application deadline is fast approaching on March 31st! Please consider a donation to the Friends of the Chugach Avalanche Center via Pick.Click.Give when filling out your application this year! Every dollar helps cover weather station maintenance, safety equipment, research projects, and ensures professional, daily avalanche advisories all winter long for your favorite backcountry ski and snowmachine zones on the Chugach National Forest and Chugach State Park. THANK YOU!

Recent Avalanches: A remote triggered avalanche was reported in Placer River Valley on Tuesday. Last weekend we saw multiple human triggered avalanches on all aspects. Most of these occured above 1,500’ and many were triggered remotely.

Our last storm delivered around 1’ of snow on top of a widespread weak layer of facets at all elevations. On wind loaded slopes and in the Girdwood Valley we can expect this layer to be around 2' deep. This week a lot of people have been getting out in steep terrain and we are seeing less avalanche activity which is telling us this layer is likely becoming more stubborn for now.

This type of setup is generally slow to gain strength, difficult to assess, and may support multiple ski tracks before it slides. While mid and upper elevations warrant a careful assessment our most recent human triggered avalanche occurred at lower elevations where warm temperatures on steep sunny slopes likely contributed to the snow becoming more unstable. With temperatures possibly reaching the mid 30’s below 1000’ consider looking for shadier slopes in the afternoon.

It is important to remember on these sunny days that weak layers are notorious for catching you off guard. If you choose to move into more consequential terrain, think about how you are going to manage this problem and where you would go if you were caught and carried. Use safe spots to watch your partners on the way up and down, and consider runs that fan out at the bottom rather than ending in a terrain trap.

Loose snow avalanches are on our radar in steep terrain. These may be in the form of dry loose on all aspects as well as wet loose on steep southerly facing slopes. Cooler than normal temperatures for this time of year have largely kept wet loose avalanches at bay but lower elevations may be the first to experience these today.

Turnagain Pass and Girdwood

Lawinengefahr

Kernpunkte

Lawinenprobleme

Persistent Slabs

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