Avalanche forecast

Salt River and Wyoming Ranges

Bridger-Teton Avalanche Center
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Avalanche danger

Fri
Alpine
2 · Moderate
Treeline
2 · Moderate
Below
1 · Low
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Out of date — this forecast expired 8 months ago. You’re viewing past conditions, not the current bulletin.

Highlights

Strong winds and new snow have created heightened avalanche conditions at upper elevations. Human triggered avalanches will be possible above 9000’. Use caution around and under steep, rocky, and wind loaded slopes. Thin coverage and shallowly buried rocks remain a significant hazard at low elevations.

Avalanche problems

  • Wind Slabs

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

    Yesterday, the Mount Coffin anemometer recorded 5 hours of gusts over 100 mph from the southwest/west before it malfunctioned. The 5-7 inches of snow that fell in the Salt River and Wyoming Ranges has been redistributed to lee aspects. Expect to find drifts over a foot thick above 8000 feet in terrain exposed to the wind. You could trigger a wind slab on steep slopes at upper elevations where these slabs sit on a variety of surfaces, including crusts and facets. Pay close attention around ridgelines, steep rocky slopes exposed to the wind and cross loaded gullies.

    (12/8/2025)

    Watch for cracking in new drifts.

    Photo: BTAC

  • Persistent Slabs

    • Alpine
    • Treeline
    • Below treeline
    Likelihood
    Unlikely
    Size
    1.5–2.5

    Weak layers of snow that formed in November are buried 2-4 feet deep beneath hard slabs. These slabs have been largely unreactive in recent days due to a strong upper snowpack and time for adjustment between layers. The 5-7 inches of snow that fell yesterday has put additional stress on buried weak layers. While it is becoming unlikely, the possibility remains that you could impact these weak layers and trigger a persistent slab avalanche. Several more inches of forecast snow by this evening will further increase the stress on weak layers. Very steep, rocky, and wind affected northerly slopes at upper elevations are most suspect.  Keep in mind that a surface avalanche involving new snow is the best way to trigger deeper weak layers.

    Very steep, rocky, and wind affected terrain where persistent slab avalanches are most likely to occur.

Avalanche Discussion

With less snow arriving than forecast yesterday and warm temperatures during the storm, it seems like new snow has bonded better than expected to old snow surfaces. That said, don’t get complacent as you ride. Keep your head on a swivel and watch for signs of unstable snow, particularly on wind loaded slopes. Shooting cracks in the snow surface and collapses point to instability. Keep your slope angles low if you find these signs.

If you’re out and about in the Salt River or Wyoming Ranges, please consider submitting an observation. For those who send in pictures or write about what they find out there, we can’t thank you enough! This forecast zone has very few observations. This lack of information, combined with the size and snowpack variability across these two mountain ranges, contributes to uncertainty in our avalanche forecast. If you find the time to send us a picture, thank you!

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