Southeast Mountains

The SE Mountain forecast area has seen the most avalanche activity over the last week. Yesterday, forecasters remotely triggered multiple avalanches near Double Top Mountain, and an avalanche accident occurred just outside our forecast area in the Elk Mountains northeast of Lambertson Peak. The most dangerous avalanche conditions can be encountered at near and above treeline elevations where snowpack depths are more variable and the potential avalanche size is the largest.  You can reduce your exposure to the persistent slab avalanche problem by choosing conservative slope angles and riding lower elevation southerly facing terrain. 

The total snowpack depth is playing a key role in areas where the persistent slab avalanche problem is more or less reactive. In the last week, the bullseye for avalanche activity has been in the SE Mountain Forecast Area. During this period there have been 11 persistent slab avalanches documented in the SE Mountains and 1 persistent slab avalanche documented in the NW Mountains. Of course, we can't see every mountain and record every avalanche, so those numbers are never going to be perfect. Most notably we haven't had the best views along the spine of the Ruby Range. However, we have had enough views of both forecast areas to get a general sense of recent avalanche activity. Where the snowpack is deep, weak layers are both harder to affect with the weight of a person, and those buried weak layers continue to slowly gain strength. Where the snowpack is shallower, those weak layers haven't gained much strength and their shallower depth is easier to effect. It's difficult to put a number to what could be considered generally deep or generally shallow, as there are many variables. However, for some guidance, a deep snowpack where the persistent slab avalanche problem is less reactive and more difficult to trigger will have a total snowpack height of over 200cm. A shallow snowpack and somewhere that the persistent slab avalanche problem is more reactive will have a total snowpack height somewhere between 100 and 180cm.

CBAC forecasters were on the hunt for a reactive snowpack yesterday to verify avalanche conditions. They remotely triggered multiple avalanches just traveling near avalanche terrain. That report is located here. 

An avalanche accident occurred just outside of the CBAC forecast area on Wednesday, March 6th. A snowmobiler was caught, buried, and seriously injured in an avalanche in the Elk Mountains northeast of Lambertson Peak. His partners were able to extricate him and performed CPR. Crested Butte Mountain Rescue and Western Mountain Rescue Team evacuated him to a waiting ambulance, and he was transferred to the hospital. We wish the snowmobiler a full recovery, and our thoughts are with him and his friends and family. CAIC forecasters will visit the accident site on Thursday. More information will be provided in the coming days.