Wind Slabs
- Hochgebirge
- Waldgrenze
- Unterhalb der Waldgrenze
- Wahrscheinlichkeit
- Likely
- Größe
- 2
Drifting by strong winds blowing from the south-southwest deposited obvious stiff wind slabs in upper elevation terrain, but yesterday's snow accumulations likely hid these from view. Overnight winds shifted from the west-northwest and easily formed new soft wind slabs in exposed upper elevation terrain. Winds from the west-northwest increased significantly overnight in the northern part of the zone, particularly in the Bear Lake area, with the wind sensor on Paris Peak showing 30 to 40 mph winds. Despite new snow accumulations of only a few inches, expect to find sensitive new wind slabs around a foot deep in exposed upper elevation terrain.
- Watch for and avoid stiffer wind drifted snow on the lee side of major ridges, below cornices, and in and around terrain features like cliff bands, sub-ridges, and gully walls.
- Wind slabs appear smooth, chalky, and rounded, and they can sound hollow, like a drum, when you move around on them.
- Cracking is a red flag indicating unstable snow.
- Hard wind slabs sometimes let you get out on them before releasing suddenly. Freshly formed, softer wind slabs are often very easily triggered, sometimes remotely (or from a distance).
- People should stay off of, out from under, and well away from large overhanging cornices, which are deceptive and often break much further back than expected. Natural cornice falls are possible, and these could trigger avalanches on slopes beneath.