Tetons

At the mid and upper elevations, 8 to 12 inches of new snow combined with increasing southwest winds and warming temperatures have created one to two foot soft slabs. Backcountry travelers could easily trigger these slabs, along with loose snow sluffs, on steep, wind-loaded slopes. Much higher consequences will result from failure of deeper instabilities formed in November. Dangerous hard slabs, three to six feet in depth, could be triggered by backcountry travelers, step down from smaller slides, or release spontaneously under the load of the new snow. Snowfall is expected to continue through the day, which will increase the size and sensitivity of these slabs. Below 7,500 feet, the primary concern is newly developed soft slabs and loose snow sluffs 6 to 12 inches in depth. TRAVEL IN AVALANCHE TERRAIN IS NOT RECOMMENDED.

Drier air is expected to move into the area tonight with only light, scattered showers through Tuesday. Mountain temperatures will drop into the single digits Monday night before rising to near 10 on Tuesday. Ridgetop winds will be southwesterly at 10 to 25 miles per hour.The general avalanche hazard is expected to be HIGH in the Southwest Trails / Greys River area where higher snowfall has loaded a weak, shallow snowpack. In the Teton area, CONSIDERABLE hazard is expected due to less snowfall and a deeper, less faceted snowpack. In these areas, both recently developed soft slabs to 2 feet in depth, and deeper hard slabs up to 4 feet, remain easily triggered and have some potential to release spontaneously as southwest winds transport snow into avalanche starting zones.