Temperatures have been well above freezing at the mid and lower elevations and mostly above freezing at the upper elevations since around noon on Saturday. The freezing level at 5 AM this morning was around 9,500 feet. These warm temperatures have created unstable conditions on steep slopes. Natural avalanche activity has been observed on a variety of aspects during the past two days. Wet loose and wet slab avalanches are possible on steep slopes today. The potential for these events to be human triggered or release naturally will increase as the day warms. Steep snow covered terrain and known avalanche paths are considered to be dangerous. Very steep, rocky terrain with a shallow snowpack is especially suspect.
Wet loose avalanches are possible on a variety of aspects in steep terrain at all elevations. These wet slides could be human triggered or release spontaneously and have potential to entrain snow to the ground in areas where the snowpack is isothermal.
Wet slab avalanches are possible in steep terrain and could be human triggered or released naturally in response to warming temperatures.
Southwesterly flow aloft will bring moisture over the region overnight before drier conditions and decreasing cloud cover prevail during the day. Overnight lows in the mountains will be in the mid to upper 20s before rising into the mid-30s in the afternoon. Westerly ridgetop winds will range from 10 to 20 miles per hour.The general avalanche hazard is expected to be LOW early Wednesday morning before quickly rising to MODERATE before noon and possibly to CONSIDERABLE in the afternoon. Cloud cover overnight will help keep the snowpack from losing heat through radiational cooling, and frozen snow surfaces should break down quickly in the morning hours. Conditions will continue to be unstable on steep slopes with areas of unconsolidated snow, and wet loose sluffs and wet slabs will again become a concern once snow surfaces soften. Plan for an early start, and monitor conditions closely.
