Avalanche forecast

Turnagain Pass and Girdwood

Chugach National Forest Avalanche Center
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Avalanche danger

Tue
Alpine
2 · Moderate
Treeline
1 · Low
Below
1 · Low
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Out of date — this forecast expired 8 months ago. You’re viewing past conditions, not the current bulletin.

Highlights

The snowpack is in a deep freeze after several weeks with no significant new snow. A stubborn lingering wind slab could cause a human-triggered avalanche around 1' deep today, but we expect those to be isolated to specific slopes in the alpine. Glide avalanches have been less frequent the past week, but they are unpredictable and worth avoiding as much as possible.

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Avalanche problems

  • Persistent Slabs

    • Alpine
    • Treeline
    • Below treeline
    Likelihood
    Possible
    Size
    1–2

    Recent Avalanches: It's been 9 days since the last reported human-triggered avalanches. Which were a cluster of three remotely triggered wind slabs in the Seattle Creek area near Big Chief. 

    Turangain Pass and the surrounding mountains have been in a major snowfall drought so far in December. Our last measurable precipitation was December 6th, our last significant wind event was December 13th, and our last known significant human-triggered avalanches were also December 13th. This lack of any significant weather is causing our snowpack to enter a mostly dormant phase, with cold temps causing weak snow to form near the surface but otherwise little activity with buried weak layers.

    The most likely way to trigger an avalanche today will be in areas harboring old wind slabs with weak sugary snow underneath. We expect these to be up to 1' deep and stubborn for a person to trigger. This type of setup is most common along ridgelines and convex rollovers, but since wind-affected snow is widespread in the alpine, a pocket of wind slab could exist in atypical locations. You can look for stiff and hollow-feeling snow surfaces to identify where these wind slabs could be triggered. 

    Glide Avalanches: The cycle of glide avalanches has been very active throughout the season so far, but in the past week the activity seems to have slowed down significantly. Despite this encouraging trend, we always recommend identifying glide cracks and trying to minimize your time spent underneath them to avoid these potentially large and destructive avalanches. 

    (12/14/2025) Photo: John Sykes

    This snow profile is from a week ago, but still reflects the current setup. With a weak layer of facets about 1' deep and buried surface hoar about 2' deep.

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