Recent new snow lies upon firm old snow surfaces. This new snow could be triggered by skiers and riders in very steep terrain as loose snow sluffs or possibly as pockets of soft slab to a foot in depth. On steep northerly aspects above an elevation of 9,000 feet, hard slab avalanches could be triggered by the weight of a single person.
Skiers and riders venturing onto steep, north facing slopes above 9,000 feet could trigger hard slab avalanches with crown depths up to three feet deep. Suspect locations are steep, rocky slopes where faceted snow persists at the base of the snowpack.
( Discussion is generated from the previous day's afternoon forecast. )One weak weather system has excited to the east and another is headed this way from the southwest. Skies will be partly cloudy overnight. On Thursday temperatures will be in the teens in the morning and rise into the 20s during the day. Clouds will be on the increase with light snowfall possible in the afternoon and into the evening. Accumulations of a couple inches are likely by Friday morning. Winds are forecast to be west-southwest at 10 miles per hour until they begin to increase near the end of the day. The general avalanche hazard is expected to be LOW in the Greys River and Teton areas and below an elevation of 9,000 feet in the Togwotee Pass/Continental Divide Trail area. In these areas isolated pockets of soft slab up to a foot in depth could be triggered on the early December drought surface in steep terrain. In the upper elevations of the Togwotee Pass area the hazard is MODERATE. Here the weight of a single person could trigger hard slabs up to three feet in depth in isolated areas on steep northerly aspects.
