Lawinenlagebericht

Salmon River Mountains

Payette Avalanche Center
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Lawinengefahr

Thu
Hochgebirge
3 · Erheblich
Waldgrenze
3 · Erheblich
Unterhalb
2 · Mässig
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Veraltet — dieser Lagebericht ist 6 months ago abgelaufen. Du siehst vergangene Verhältnisse, nicht den aktuellen Bericht.

Kernpunkte

It is time for conservative decision-making and cautious route-finding. Human-triggered avalanches are likely where wind-formed drifts and slabs exist. In terrain sheltered from the wind, triggering large avalanches is less likely, but still possible.

Lawinenprobleme

  • Wind Slabs

    • Hochgebirge
    • Waldgrenze
    • Unterhalb der Waldgrenze
    Wahrscheinlichkeit
    Likely
    Größe
    1–2

    Over a foot of new snow since 2/14 with Southern winds reaching into the 30mph range have elevated the avalanche danger. Avalanche conditions are most dangerous in wind-exposed terrain. Wind slabs will be most common (and dangerous) at upper elevations, but this week's wind also drifted some open terrain in the middle and lower elevations. 

    Triggering a wind slab is most likely near ridgelines, beneath cornices, and on the sides of cross-loaded gullies.

    Avoid slopes steep enough to slide where you see evidence of wind loading such as drifted, pillowed areas,  or feel denser/stiffer snow beneath your board(s) or sled. These avalanches can be large enough to bury people. Additionally, they can trigger or "step down" to Persistent Slab avalanches as they move downslope.

    Steep, wind-loaded slopes should be off limits today, regardless of what elevation band you are in.  

     

     

  • Persistent Slabs

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

    Weak snow composed of surface hoar and near-surface facets from a prolonged high-pressure spell was buried 2/8. This snow is around ~2-3 feet deep on West Mountain and up to ~2.5-3.5 feet deep in the Salmon River Zone. Though becoming less likely, you are most likely to encounter this problem on shaded slopes facing NW-N-NE above 6,500 feet. Be heads-up around steep slopes that have been protected from the sun and wind, such as terrain features similar to those shown in the photo on the right. Persistent slab avalanches are becoming difficult to trigger. As more time has passed since the last major storm, it is unlikely that there will be any clear feedback (such as cracking, collapsing, or whumpfing) before an avalanche. The weight of a snowmachine is much more likely to affect buried weak layers than a person's weight. 

Avalanche Discussion

We wish you a safe and happy powder day in the mountains! With all of this new soft and dry snow we can expect that dry loose sluffing is going to be happening within the upper 1-2 feet of the snowpack in steep terrain with you and probably without you naturally. 

Keep in mind that a small avalanche in big terrain or terrain with traps like cliffs, creeks or gullies can be a really big problem...Overall now is the time to focus and increase your margin of error by paying attention to red flags, avoiding steep terrain and or maintaining spacing like one at a time, eyes on your partners, and regrouping only at a true safe spot out of avalanche run-outs. 

Submit an observation to help inform other users and improve information sharing. Don't want other people to know where you were? No problem, you can set it to private so only the forecast team can see it.

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