Natural avalanches unlikely, human triggered possible.
Treeline
Natural avalanches unlikely.
Below Treeline
Natural avalanches unlikely.
Alpine
Natural avalanches unlikely, human triggered possible.
Treeline
Natural avalanches unlikely.
Below Treeline
Natural avalanches unlikely.
Alpine
Natural avalanches unlikely, human triggered possible.
Treeline
Natural avalanches unlikely.
Below Treeline
Natural avalanches unlikely.
Regions
South Rockies.
Cold and dry conditions continue with no change in the foreseeable future.
Confidence
-
Weather Forecast
FRIDAY NIGHT: Cloudy, moderate wind out of the west, alpine temperatures drop to -20 C.SATURDAY: Local valley cloud, alpine high temperatures around -10 C, light wind out of the west.SUNDAY: Scattered cloud cover, alpine high temperatures around -8 C, strong wind out of the southwest.MONDAY: Cloudy, alpine high temperatures around -5 C, strong wind out of the west.
Avalanche Summary
No new avalanches have been reported in the region. Small wind slabs have been reported in neighboring regions. If you have been out, please submit any observations to the Mountain Information Network MIN.
Snowpack Summary
Early season conditions prevail in this region with roughly 30-90 cm of snow in alpine areas and much less at lower elevations. Surface conditions may range from soft power, hard wind slab, and some sun crusts. Isolated pockets of stiff wind slab likely exist on leeward slopes. The bottom half of the snowpack is composed of weak sugary snow and crusts. This layer has not been active, but terrain features like smooth alpine bowls with variable snowpack depths are still suspect given this snowpack structure.
Problems
Wind Slabs
Wind Slab avalanches are the release of a cohesive layer of snow (a slab) formed by the wind. Wind typically transports snow from the upwind sides of terrain features and deposits snow on the downwind side. Wind slabs are often smooth and rounded and sometimes sound hollow, and can range from soft to hard. Wind slabs that form over a persistent weak layer (surface hoar, depth hoar, or near-surface facets) may be termed Persistent Slabs or may develop into Persistent Slabs.