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Out of date — this forecast expired 12 years ago.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 remains LOW for all elevations and aspects. Small isolated areas of wet snow instability will likely exist during the afternoon hours. Normal caution is advised.

Avalanche problems

  • Cornices

    • Alpine
    • Treeline
    • Below treeline
    Likelihood
    Unlikely
    Size
    1

    A decent overnight snow surface refreeze is expected to have occurred last night with near to below freezing air temperatures and clearing skies during the last few hours of darkness to assist with radiational cooling. The best overnight snow surface refreeze will have occurred at the upper elevations (above 9,000') where air temperatures were below freezing for several hours last night. As the day progresses, areas of surface wet snow will develop, possibly on all aspects, especially at the low and mid elevations. Areas of wet snow instability that develop, mainly during the afternoon hours, are expected to remain small and isolated. As supportable melt-freeze crust transitions to unsupportable wet snow, small pockets of instability will become possible in steep terrain. Free water drainage from the snowpack has been well established over the past couple of weeks which is expected to keep large areas of instability from forming. Signs of instability are expected to remain limited to human triggered roller balls, pinwheels, and small human triggered loose wet sluffs.

Avalanche Discussion

Observations were made and received yesterday from Chickadee Ridge (Mount Rose area), Castle Peak (Donner Summit area), and Red Lake Peak (Carson Pass area). A wide variance in overnight refreeze and the amount of wet snow that existed was observed during the morning hours. On Chickadee Ridge, overnight snow surface refreeze was better than expected with all aspects remaining frozen at 10 am. By 11 am supportable conditions remained with 1 to 2 inches of surface wet snow on SE and S aspects at 8,500' to 9,400'. On Castle Peak, a poor overnight snow surface refreeze had occurred with widespread areas of wet snow present at 9 am. By 10:30 am, marginally skier supportable conditions were reported on E-SE-S aspects between 7,200' and 7,900'.

On Red Lake Peak, a lack of snow made over snow travel difficult below 8,000'. Shaded northerly aspects between 8,400' and 9,000' held a less consolidated snowpack than what was observed in other Carson Pass area locations in recent days. Near crust facets were easily discernable in the upper portion of the snowpack, a significant contrast from the snowpack structure observed at similar elevation/aspect on Red Vista/Elephant's Hump the day prior. Moderate speed ridgetop winds kept large amounts of surface wet snow from forming on open slopes.

Regions covered