Salt River and Wyoming Ranges

The general avalanche hazard is CONSIDERABLE. Strong winds have drifted new and older snow creating easily triggered soft slabs to two feet in depth on lee slopes.The slabs rest on slick crusts on southerly exposures and weak faceted snow on northerly aspects at upper elevations. Expect slides to pull out wide areas and run very quickly over long distances. Some potential also remains for travelers, especially those on snowmachines, to trigger hard slabs up to six feet deep in some higher elevation avalanche paths.

( Discussion is generated from the previous day's afternoon forecast. ) Tuesday night into Wednesday moderate snowfall and strong, gusty westerly winds are forecasted. Accumulations of 6 to 10 inches are expected with locally deeper amounts on the west side of the Tetons. Temperatures will remain near zero overnight then rise into the teens Wednesday. Over two feet of recent snow currently rests on slick crusts and weak faceted snow. New snow and strong winds will add to existing unstable slopes increasing the chance of natural slides and user triggered events on a variety of aspects. Soft slabs running within the newer snow or involving the new and old snow could be up to three feet deep. As noted in the Wolf Mountain slide, the potential remains for deep, hard slabs up to six feet in depth to be triggered, especially by snowmobiles. The possibility of triggering these deeper slabs is higher in the Continental Divide/Togwotee Pass area where the snowpack rests on a weak base of faceted snow. The General Avalanche Hazard will begin at CONSIDERABLE Wednesday and may rapidly increase to HIGH with sufficient snow and wind.