Lawinenlagebericht

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Sawtooth Avalanche Center
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Lawinengefahr

Mon
Hochgebirge
2 · Mässig
Waldgrenze
2 · Mässig
Unterhalb
1 · Gering
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Veraltet — dieser Lagebericht ist 4 years ago abgelaufen. Du siehst vergangene Verhältnisse, nicht den aktuellen Bericht.

Kernpunkte

Weak layers buried 1-3 feet below the snow surface are capable of producing large avalanches. To significantly reduce your odds of triggering a slide, steer clear of steep terrain that is exposed to the effects of the wind. Small wind drifts and slabs will be forming during today's storm and these may be reactive to your weight.  Small slabs that release can trigger larger avalanches as they travel downslope.

Lawinenprobleme

  • Persistent Slabs

    • Hochgebirge
    • Waldgrenze
    • Unterhalb der Waldgrenze
    Wahrscheinlichkeit
    Possible
    Größe
    1.5–2.5

    Several weak layers are buried in the upper 1-3' of the snowpack. These layers are capable of producing large avalanches. We went looking for them in this zone last week, and found them in several of our snowpits (read our observation and see photos, video at right/above). These weak layers vary by aspect and elevation, and the overlapping patterns are complex and hard to decipher. Crusts with facets, surface hoar, and near-surface facets—it's a safe bet that one or more of these layers exist on most slopes.

    These layers are capable of producing large avalanches, but the likelihood of triggering a slide is gradually decreasing. Unfortunately, the structure for producing these slides (slab + weak layer) remains. Want to avoid triggering a large avalanche today? You can significantly reduce your risk by steering clear of steep, wind-affected terrain. 

    ADDITIONAL DISCUSSION: Today's storm will bring 3-6" of snow to this zone by the end of the day. Moderate to strong gusty winds will be pushing this snow around as it falls, building isolated wind slabs in exposed terrain. These aren't likely to be large, but they may be sensitive thanks to the weak snow surface that will be buried by this storm. Look for drifts, dunes, pillows, and blowing snow as evidence of the presence of these. Cracks shooting out in front of your skis/machine are a sure sign you've found one.

Avalanche Discussion

MODERATE Danger and Persistent Slab Problems

The Avalanche Danger scale is a tool we use to communicate with our users (you). It is an admittedly imperfect tool. The hazards posed by our snowpack today are a great illustration of this. As time passes without a major loading event, the weak layers in our snowpack have some time to gain a bit of strength, which decreases your odds of triggering a slide. Because of this, the danger has decreased to Moderate. Sounds good, right? Well, yes and no. Read on. 

Today, if you choose to enter avalanche terrain, it's more likely than not that you won't trigger a slide. However, the possibility of triggering a slide remains. This possibility is driving my terrain selection in the backcountry, and the terrain selection of both professionals and experienced backcountry travelers alike. How you choose to deal with this problem is entirely up to you and your level of risk tolerance.

Would you like to avoid triggering an avalanche today?  Simple: avoid avalanche terrain and terrain exposed to hazard from above. Maybe you don't care whether or not you trigger an avalanche large enough to bury you and your partners? Well, that's your choice, enter all of the avalanche terrain you want and prepare yourself for the potential consequences.

Things get much harder when you find yourself somewhere in the middle, as most of us do. Do you find yourself in this category? Welcome to the club. We want to ski and ride steep powder, but we also want to go home to family and friends at the end of the day. You can significantly reduce (but not completely eliminate) your risk by avoiding very steep slopes that are exposed to the effects of the wind. Spend some time thinking about what it would look like if you do trigger a large slide in the terrain you are in. Will you be pulled through trees at high speed or buried deeply in a terrain trap at the bottom? Or is the runout of the slope you are on cleaner and more gradual? We can reduce our risk by thinking about these things and using them to inform our terrain selection. However, if we choose to enter avalanche terrain we are "playing the game" and we should be honest with ourselves about the potential outcomes. 

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