Avalanche forecast

Soldier & Wood River Valley Mtns

Sawtooth Avalanche Center
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Avalanche danger

Sun
Alpine
3 · Considerable
Treeline
3 · Considerable
Below
2 · Moderate
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Highlights

You're likely to trigger avalanches on wind loaded slopes. Smaller avalanches may provide sufficient triggers for much larger, more destructive avalanches. Slides can be triggered remotely—from flat terrain below, above, and to the sides of steep slopes.

Avalanche problems

  • Wind Slabs

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

    You're likely to trigger wind slab avalanches in steep, wind-loaded terrain. These slides can be large on their own, but also provide an effective trigger for a much larger persistent slab avalanche, as described below. This problem is most prominent as you move up in elevation in open, wind-exposed terrain. Be on the lookout for wind affected surfaces, such as a pillowed or drifted appearance, and hollow "drum-like" slabs. Cracks shooting from your skis or sled mean you've found a sensitive slab.

    (2/7/2025) Natural wind slab avalanche up Quigley Canyon.

    Photo: Jon Preuss

  • Persistent Slabs

    • Alpine
    • Treeline
    • Below treeline
    Likelihood
    Possible
    Size
    2–3

    Triggering a very large persistent slab avalanche remains a concern. You're most likely to trigger one of these slides in steep terrain facing W-NW-N-NE-SE terrain (plot). These hefty 3-6 foot thick slabs rest above weak snow formed during January's drought, including surface hoar, facets, and facet + crust combinations.Although recent observations point towards an improving persistent slab problem, yesterday's snow and wind stalled the incremental progress. Wind slab avalanches and cornice failures could provide effective triggers for these deeper, more stubborn avalanches, resulting in wide and destructive slides. 

    Snowpack collapsing or whumpfing is a clear sign of unstable conditions. However, a lack of obvious warning signs doesn't mean you're in the clear. Persistent Slabs can release in surprising ways, break wider than expected, and release above or hundreds of feet away from where they are triggered. 

     

    (2/5/2025) Large slab avalanche on Griffin Butte, 7800' NE. Photo: Sawtooth Avalanche Center

Avalanche Discussion

After a week-long storm cycle, we're wading into tricky waters with the combination of powder fever and limited amounts of instability feedback. Avoiding the wind slab problem should be relatively straight-forward, but the persistent slab problem requires a bit more patience and diligence. In the last couple of days, we have received reports of a few booming collapses and a couple of fresh persistent slab avalanches despite the apparent positive trend in stability.

We still have considerable amounts of uncertainty regarding the sensitivity of the persistent slab problem. Additionally, the 3-6 feet of snow (4-6 inches of water) that fell over the past week means that these persistent slab avalanches will be large and destructive. The nebulous reactivity paired with obvious high-consequences is what's keeping our terrain choices simple and conservative for the time being.

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