Clear skies have promoted the formation of a surface crust however temperatures in the mountains remained above freezing overnight and this crust is expected to be thin and to rapidly break down. The avalanche hazard will be Low during the early morning hours and will quickly rise to Moderate by mid morning and to Considerable this afternoon. Morning sunlight and increasing temperatures will soften the snow surface surface and the chance for wet slides will quickly develop and could release naturally later in the day. Lingering wind slabs will also become more sensitive as the day progresses. It is recommended that backcountry travel be limited to the morning hours and to be conscious of terrain that might be impacted if wet slides occurred above a planned route.
Surface slabs with depths of four inches to a foot could be triggered in isolated wind loaded pockets above 9000 feet in steep shaded terrain. Yesterday afternoon a skier triggered such a slide in a wind loaded couloir in the the Tetons. Details and a photo are posted on the website.
This afternoon, wet loose avalanche activity could be triggered or release naturally in all snow covered terrain affected by sunlight and warming. Warm temperatures overnight and highs near fifty degrees degrees yesterday will allow deeper penetration into the snowpack and in continuous steep terrain the amount of snow involved could become significant.
Dry weather is expected. On Sunday skies will be mostly sunny. Winds will be light from the west to southwest. Temperatures are forecast to drop into the 20s overnight and rise into the 40 and 50s during the day. Spring conditions exist and backcountry travelers are advised to recreate early and be out of avalanche terrain before snow surfaces become soft and unstable. Steep slopes, warm temperatures and large triggers, like snowmobiles, are a recipe for wet slide activity. The general avalanche hazard is expected to be LOW in the early morning hours and increase to MODERATE and possibly to CONSIDERABLE during the warmest portion of the day.
