Avalanche forecast

Central Sierra Nevada

Sierra Avalanche Center
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Avalanche danger

Alpine
1 · Low
Treeline
1 · Low
Below
1 · Low
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Out of date — this forecast expired 12 years ago. You’re viewing past conditions, not the current bulletin.

Highlights

Avalanche danger is LOW for all elevations and aspects.

Normal caution is advised.

Avalanche problems

  • Cornices

    • Alpine
    • Treeline
    • Below treeline
    Likelihood
    Unlikely
    Size
    1

    A decent snow surface refreeze is expected to have occurred last night with below freezing air temperatures under partly cloudy skies. Colder air temperatures combined with increasing cloud cover are expected to reduce the amount of snow surface melt that occurs today as compared to recent days. Any areas of surface wet snow instability that form today are expected to remain small and isolated. In areas around exposed rocks and bushes where the snowpack could become unsupportable, free water drainage is already well established. This will keep the likelihood of any full depth wet snow instability to a minimum. The snow surface on northerly aspects is expected to remain frozen all day in most areas.

Avalanche Discussion

Cloud cover was much slower to materialize yesterday than forecast. As a result, observations made yesterday on Silver Peak (Pole Creek area) revealed wet surface snow formation exceeding forecast expectations. At 12:45 pm, 2 inches of wet surface snow existed on top of supportable melt-freeze crust on SE aspects in the 7,400' to 8,000' elevation range. Below 7,400' the snowpack became increasingly less supportable with unsupportable areas noted on all aspects around exposed rocks and bushes. No signs of wet snow instability were observed. Similar snow surface conditions were reported from the Carson Pass area in the 8,000' to 9,000' range. Low and mid elevation areas have lost significant amounts of snowpack depth over the past week.

Regions covered