Lawinenlagebericht

Lawinenlagebericht

Payette Avalanche Center
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Lawinengefahr

Hochgebirge
2 · Mässig
Waldgrenze
2 · Mässig
Unterhalb
2 · Mässig
Veraltet — dieser Lagebericht ist last year abgelaufen. Du siehst vergangene Verhältnisse, nicht den aktuellen Bericht.

Kernpunkte

Nearly 48 hours above freezing and rain on snow have maintained wet snow avalanche conditions. Below 8000', wet loose avalanches are possible across all aspects on terrain steeper than 35 degrees. Pay attention to how supportive recent surface crusts are and how soft and wet the snow underneath is. If you're sinking into wet, mushy snow, be sure to avoid being on or under slopes steeper than 35 degrees.

Lawinenprobleme

  • Loose Wet

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

    Lower and mid elevations have experienced nearly 48 hours of above freezing temperatures. Warm temperatures and rain on snow have created conditions ripe for wet loose avalanches. Wet loose slides may run on all aspects below 8000'. Surface crusts may be thin and only slightly capping wet, mushy snow underneath. The snowpack below 7000' is very saturated and becoming isothermal. Weird, spring weather can create weird avalanche conditions and increase uncertainty. Be aware of steep slopes where the snow has been saturated for the past couple of days. Dig down with your hand or pole to see how supportive the crust is. Look to see how wet and mushy the snow is beneath the surface crust. Avoid spending time in terrain traps in valley bottoms and underneath long-running gullies.

    (4/7/2025)

    Several-day old, wet loose debris near Deadwood summit. West-facing around 7500'

    Photo: Kevin Studley

Avalanche Discussion

The upper snowpack experienced significant change this past weekend with strong solar radiation and warm temperatures. Our upper elevation weather stations were above freezing from Saturday (the 5th) until yesterday morning (7th). That's nearly 48 hours of above freezing temperatures above 7000'. Wet loose avalanche activity increased this weekend. Yesterday, rain fell up to 7500' and temperatures dropped below freezing early this morning. Recent re-freezes will create surface crusts that are capping soft, wet snow underneath. Travel conditions will likely be challenging, to put it nicely. If you do travel in the mountains today, make sure to observe how supportive recent crusts are. Are they breaking down and becoming soft? Are you punching through to wet snow underneath? If so, avoid being on or underneath steep slopes where wet loose avalanches are possible. Be sure to give large, over-hanging cornices plenty of space this time of year.

Want to support your local avalanche forecast? Submit an observation. Submitting an observation on our website is a great way to help forecasters gather more information and improve avalanche forecasts.

Participate in a Research Project Seeking to Address Risk in Avalanche Terrain

For years, the avalanche community has worked to understand and address the human factors that influence decision-making in the backcountry. With decades of research as their foundation, Sara Boilen and Ian McCammon are developing an open-source tool to help individuals mitigate risk in avalanche terrain. The project's first stage involves interviewing backcountry recreationalists who have been traveling in avalanche terrain for at least one season. All participants will be entered to win amazing raffle prizes (from Jones Snowboards, BCA, and more!). If you’re curious about being involved, please take 1-2 minutes to fill out our basic initial survey!