Avalanche forecast

Snake River Range

Bridger-Teton Avalanche Center
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Avalanche danger

Wed
Alpine
3 · Considerable
Treeline
3 · Considerable
Below
2 · Moderate
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Highlights

Two foot thick slabs will reach peak sensitivity to triggering through the middle of the day.  On steep, wind-loaded slopes they could grow to 3 feet thick. These avalanches may fail further across the slope, above you, or at a distance where buried weak layers exist. Make conservative terrain choices, travel one-at-a-time and avoid lingering under big terrain as natural avalanches will also be possible today.

Avalanche problems

  • Wind Slabs

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

    The wind has plenty of loose snow to work with, beyond that which is falling this morning. Natural avalanches averaging 2 feet thick and up to 3 feet thick will be possible during peak loading this morning and through mid-day. Wind was blowing from the south and will shift west, building slabs across many aspects as it does. Look for cracking or collapsing on test slopes and consider lower angled options if you see these signs. Remember that existing buried weak layers may make these slabs break wider and entrain more snow if they fail.

    (2/14/2026) 9K N aspect natural that caused sympathetic avalanches on rollers nearby Photo: D. Cain

  • Persistent Slabs

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

    Buried weak layers have been responsible for human-triggered avalanches occurring right up until yesterday, five days after the last snowfall. These avalanches have frequently occurred without typical warning signs like collapsing and in some cases have defied ski cuts. It appears that most of the avalanche activity so far has occurred on surface hoar that grew in a spotty way in much of the Snake River Range, and in the south end and west side of the Tetons. The layer was preserved by a few inches of snow in a wind-less snowfall event at the end of January. Weak faceted snow that developed during the prolonged January drought exists in an even more widespread pattern. Both of these layers will be stressed by new snow, especially where wind drifts pile up on ridgetops and crossloaded slopes. 

    (2/16/2026)

    Photo of an avalanche that failed on 2/13 on buried surface hoar. This was about 20 inches deep, today's avalanches on this layer would be deeper and more dangerous.

    This avalanche was remotely triggered.

    Photo: Bridger-Teton Avalanche Center

Avalanche Discussion

Southwest wind increased early this morning and will continue to blow steadily in the 30 mph range. Peak gusts of 65 mph were recorded at 5 am at JHMR, 49 mph at Targhee, 88 mph at Relay Ridge, and 50mph at Baird, to give an indication of what’s happening at ~10,000’. Wind will remain at this velocity through the morning as it shifts west before relaxing in the afternoon. Wind drifts were forming yesterday afternoon in some areas where we traveled in the Snakes and surely continued overnight. Expect some sizable avalanches as a result. 

The buried surface hoar has led to surprising avalanches that have been triggered remotely and broken widely across slopes. It has been hard to find and incinsistently distributed which has led to people being surprised when the first sign of avalanche activity is an avalanche that they trigger. Though this layer has been spotty in distribution the weak faceted grains from the drought are more widespread. Those layers may play a larger role in this week's avalanche activity. Though small in size, these faceted grains are very dry and loose and may not hold up to the weight as we add load this week.  

Please share photos or a brief description of what you see in the mountains. Due to the scattered distribution of weak layers this winter, these observations will help everyone recognize emerging patterns.

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