Dangerous avalanche conditions exist at the mid and upper elevations. Wind slabs up to three feet in depth exist in steep terrain and could be triggered by humans. At the upper elevations very dangerous deep slabs with depths to six feet pose a serious hazard to humans. Numerous destructive deep slab avalanches released naturally during and near the end of the most recent storm cycle and are still unstable. Conservative terrain choices are essential. Avalanches are unlikely at the lower elevations.
Strong southwesterly to westerly winds created wind slabs that are one to three feet deep. At the mid and upper elevations these surface slabs could be human triggered in steep wind loaded avalanche starting zones.
At the upper elevations dangerous hard slabs lie upon weak, faceted snow and crust near the base of the snowpack. These instabilities exist on westerly through northerly to easterly aspects. Natural activity on this persistent weak layer occurred as recently as Friday. These slabs could triggered by skiers and riders and are not likely to be survivable. Multiple tracks on a suspect slope should not be considered to be an indication of stability
Temperatures are expected to be inverted and will drop well below zero tonight under mostly clear skies. A Pacific low pressure system moving into northwest British Columbia will begin to spread moisture into western Wyoming. Increasing clouds during the afternoon are to be followed by the development of light snowfall in the evening. Temperatures will rise into the teens. Winds will back to the southwest and continue at speeds of 15 to 20 with gusts to 30 miles per hour.The general avalanche hazard is expected to be CONSIDERABLE at the upper elevations. Dangerous deep slab avalanches four to six feet in depth could be triggered by skiers or snowmobilers on a rain crust at the base of the snowpack. Surface slabs one to three feet in depth could also be human triggered in steep wind loaded avalanche starting zones at the mid and upper elevations. Conservative terrain choices are essential for safe travel in avalanche terrain. Avalanches are unlikely below an elevation of 7,500 feet were the general avalanche hazard is expected to be LOW.
