Northern New Mexico

Above treeline, northwest through east facing terrain has an incredibly poor snowpack structure. Buried hard slabs rest over a well-developed layer of facets that haven't shown signs of healing. It's still possible to trigger a persistent slab avalanche in this terrain. Near treeline, a persistent slab problem also exists, however it can be found only on isolated terrain features. Address each slope individually at this elevation, dig to assess if buried hard slabs are present before committing to skiing or riding a particular slope.

On Northwest through East aspects above treeline we have an incredibly concerning snowpack structure. Hard slabs resting over well-developed faceted grains stand out in pit walls and present an obvious concern at first glance. But we haven't seen an avalanche or heard of a skier-triggered report on this structure in quite some time, so what's so spooky about it? Well, persistent avalanche problems are exactly that, persistent. Meaning, despite it being harder to trigger these avalanches over time, specifically without a load, the relative size and destructive force don't normally decrease with it. The spooky characteristic of hard slabs, in this case, is that they communicate propagation extremely well. At the same time, they can increase the initial force required to initiate propagation due to their density. The longer this avalanche problem sits without being tested, the harder it is to figure out exactly what it wants in order to avalanche, again without the addition of a new load. So what are we left with? An avalanche problem that's hard to predict, doesn't always show us obvious signs of instability and will likely be large and dangerous if triggered. Low likelihood, high consequence. With so much uncertainty we can opt to avoid this terrain altogether or if we are just itching to get out there, try and pick slopes that have the least amount of additional hazards such as cliff bands, chokes, terrain traps, etc.

Below treeline, and in many places near treeline, our snowpack is entirely faceted and shallow with lots of ground hazards. Stepping out of your skis in this terrain will result in immediately plummeting to the ground. There is certainly no shortage of weak snow to be found here. What we haven't been able to sustain all season long though is a cohesive slab and that's exactly what we lack currently. All season long, anytime we have developed a slab below treeline, the faceting process destroys it nearly as quickly as it was formed. Due to the cohesion-less nature of the snow, you may be able to produce small loose dry snow avalanches in steep terrain features that could sweep you or your partner off your feet.

Warming temperatures today could produce small loose-dry avalanches from steep terrain features on solar aspects. The overall cohesion-less nature of much of our snowpack means that snow could easily be entrained once things get moving. Keep it on your radar and avoid spending too much time hanging out underneath suspect features or near susceptible terrain traps.