Avalanche forecast

Avalanche forecast

Payette Avalanche Center
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Avalanche danger

Alpine
1 · Low
Treeline
1 · Low
Below
1 · Low
Out of date — this forecast expired 5 years ago. You’re viewing past conditions, not the current bulletin.

Highlights

The Avalanche Hazard throughout the West Central Mountains is Low today. The snowpack has gained a lot of strength over the last couple of days. Triggering deeper buried weak layers is getting hard, but is not impossible. Low hazard does not mean no hazard. Continue to practice safe travel protocols like exposing only one person at a time to avalanche terrain, keeping your eyes on your partners, and carrying a beacon shovel and probe in your backpack. 

Avalanche problems

  • Deep Persistent Slabs

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

    Februay's storm cycles created weak layers like surface hoar and near surface facets in between storms that were responsible for widespread natural and human triggered avalanches. The last reported human triggered avalanche was a couple of weeks ago. Our snowpack has gotten deep (over 10 feet in most places above 7,00 feet), and has put  a couple of strong layers of 1 finger to pencil hard snow above these weak layers.  Triggering these weak layers has become unlikely at this point, but not impossible.  Most slopes are deep and uniform which fair unlikely as areas to tigger weak layers, but in areas like rocky windward shoulders, ridges, or faces of peaks that are shallower due to wind scouring are stil suspect as most likely trigger points.

    So right now the chances of triggering a deep weak layer are low, but with the consequences as high as they are if you do trigger an avalanche in our mid pack, it should make you think aout the terrain you select and how you ultimately aproach and travel through avalanche terrain, or slopes steeper than 30 degrees with consequences or exposure.  Think about where the snow might flow if it slid, and where would it take you?  

    North Aspect above Fisher Creek Saddle on Friday March 5th

Avalanche Discussion

The last few days of Vitamin D charge we all have been waiting for, and some of the warmest temperatures that we have seen this year have helped stabilize some of the upper snowpack, and has created slick Sun crusts that will likely challenge future layers of snow to stick to them. The winds have calmed down until recently, but with the Sun and the temperatures over the last few days, there just is not much snow for transport, and any slabs that may have formed have likely bonded enough that a large failure is very unlikely. Cornice failures as well as a lot of wet snow activity took place this week. Temperatures are going to be cooling down through the day on Saturday as well as a dusting of 1-3 inches of fresh snow.   Friday, we found some soft powder on Northerly, protected, upper elevation slopes. We also saw a lot of risky tracks on slopes from riders like side-hilling uderneath big cornices on Northern big terrain. Hopefully these folks were watching their partners and were all equpped with first aid and avalanche rescue gear. Take the time to tarvel cautiously in and around steep terrain so that if something does happen it is minimized.    Check your aspect and slope angle regularly...Are you in avalanche terrain, and carrying a transciever, shovel and probe in your backpack?... Across the U. S. we have had 33 avalanche fatalities so far this year.  

If you see or trigger avalanche activity, please take the time to snap a picture and note the approximate elevation and aspect, you can submit an observation on our website. Getting your info helps forecasters and other users get a better picture of the conditions throughout our mountains. If you have trouble using our observations page, please email us at: [email protected]

  Please be mindful of other users in the mountains, and where you are at. There are closures for motorized travel in and around the local ski areas, in the Lick Creek Canyon,  Granite Mtn, Jug Mountain, and other areas throughout our region.  Check out the Winter Travel Map to find out where you can shred on your sled or moto.  Not all of these areas are signed, it is your responsibility to know where these closures exist.