The avalanche danger is Low in the majority of terrain today. The danger will rise to Moderate in steep upper elevation terrain later in the day. There it will be possible to trigger wind slabs that form during the day today. Expect these slabs to be less than a foot in depth and pose more of a threat when triggered above terrain traps such as cliffs, gullies and trees. Pay attention to changing conditions and adjust your terrain choices if encountering obvious signs of unstable snow such as shooting cracks and whoompfing.
New snow overnight ranging from 2-6" combined with strong winds and an additional 2-4" today will help to form shallow slabs in the upper elevations. Triggering these slabs will be most likely in very steep wind loaded terrain.
The National Weather Service in Riverton has issued a Winter Storm Watch beginning tomorrow afternoon, Monday and continuing until Tuesday night. Scattered snow showers will taper off tonight as the current system exits the area. Total overnight accumulations will be light, in the 1-3” range. As the next system approaches tomorrow, snowfall will increase as will temperatures. Daytime accumulations tomorrow will be in the 4-6” range in all forecast areas. Overnight lows at ridgetops will be in the single digits before rising into the upper twenties tomorrow. Winds will be out of the west and southwest at 15-25 mph.The avalanche danger will start out Low in the morning and increase to Moderate in the afternoon. Avalanche activity will be confined to the new snow and be more pronounced in the upper elevations. The actual timing of the increase in danger will be dependent on the accumulation of new snow. Paying attention to changing conditions will be important in making informed decisions tomorrow. Be on the lookout for signs of active loading of slopes as well as obvious signs of instability such as avalanches, shooting cracks and whoompfing.
