Persistent Slabs
- Alpine
- Treeline
- Below treeline
- Likelihood
- Very Likely
- Size
- 2–3
Recent Avalanches: There were reports of multiple remote triggered avalanches in Lost Lake on Friday. There were also several large avalanches reported on mountains around Seward and seen at a distance closer to Lost Lake. These are the same scary avalanches we have been seeing in Turnagain Pass from the Valentine’s Day buried surface hoar layer.
The most recent storm is moving out this morning, but conditions will remain dangerous today. There will be a fresh layer of snow anywhere from 8 to 18" deep, and the weather is expected to be fairly quiet. But all of that new snow has loaded a touchy weak layer of buried surface hoar that has been producing avalanches for the past two weeks and is expected to remain reactive today. This is a very likely scenario for seeing human-triggered avalanches, and we are hoping that folks stay out of steep terrain for now and make it home safe. With a bad surface hoar problem like we are currently dealing with, we often see avalanches failing on lower-angle slopes than we would normally observe. Keep this in mind if you are getting out to enjoy the new snow, and embrace a cautious mindset with this challenging and dangerous setup.
Loose snow avalanches are very likely today with all of the low-density snow we have received in the past 24 hours. These will likely be occurring naturally if the sun comes out in the afternoon. There is plenty of snow to entrain right now, so keep an eye on overhead slopes as you travel.
New snow and strong winds will make cornice falls very likely today. These often trigger larger avalanches, especially with the kind of snowpack we are dealing with. Avoid lingering under cornices, and give them plenty of space if you are traveling along ridgelines.
Glide Avalanches remain likely, with at least two avalanches seen over the past week. These are very large and unpredictable. The only way to manage this problem is to avoid traveling below open glide cracks.
