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Avalanche Forecast

Archived

Jan 7th, 2026–Jan 8th, 2026

Alpine
Natural avalanches unlikely, human triggered possible.
Treeline
Natural avalanches unlikely, human triggered possible.
Below Treeline
Natural avalanches unlikely.
Alpine
Natural avalanches unlikely, human triggered possible.
Treeline
Natural avalanches unlikely, human triggered possible.
Below Treeline
Natural avalanches unlikely.
Alpine
Natural avalanches unlikely, human triggered possible.
Treeline
Natural avalanches unlikely, human triggered possible.
Below Treeline
Natural avalanches unlikely.

Regions

South Rockies, East Purcell, Bull.

Wind slabs remain possible to human-trigger.

Continually assess the surface snow as you travel and back off slopes that feel dense or stiff.

Confidence

Moderate

  • Uncertainty is due to the limited number of field observations.

Avalanche Summary

On Tuesday a several size 1 human triggered wind slab avalanche was reported.

As storm snow settles over a surface hoar layer we expect human triggered avalanches to remain possible.

Snowpack Summary

Up to 30 cm of recent accumulated storm snow covers a variety of old surfaces, including surface hoar in wind-sheltered terrain and a sun crust on steep south-facing slopes.

In the mid-snowpack, a melt-freeze crust exists that was buried in mid-December. This layer is most prevalent at treeline elevations and below.

The lower snowpack consists of a thick melt-freeze crust, with weak faceted snow and/or depth hoar near the ground in areas.

Snow depths vary widely across the region, averaging roughly 100 to 200 cm at treeline.

Weather Summary

Wednesday Night
Mostly clear skies. 10 km/h southwest ridgetop wind. Treeline temperature -9 °C.

Thursday
Mix of sun and clouds. 1 to 2 cm of snow. 20 km/h west ridgetop wind. Treeline temperature -9 °C.

Friday
Mix of sun and clouds. 2 cm of snow. 30 km/h west ridgetop wind. Treeline temperature -8 °C.

Saturday
Mostly sunny. 1 cm of snow. 40 km/h west ridgetop wind. Treeline temperature -2 °C.

More details can be found in the Mountain Weather Forecast.

Terrain and Travel Advice

  • Be careful with wind-loaded pockets, especially near ridge crests and rollovers.
  • Carefully evaluate steep lines for wind slabs.
  • Avoid shallow, rocky areas where the snowpack transitions from thick to thin.

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.

Persistent Slabs

Persistent Slab avalanches are the release of a cohesive layer of snow (a slab) in the middle to upper snowpack, when the bond to an underlying persistent weak layer breaks. Persistent layers include: surface hoar, depth hoar, near-surface facets, or faceted snow. Persistent weak layers can continue to produce avalanches for days, weeks or even months, making them especially dangerous and tricky. As additional snow and wind events build a thicker slab on top of the persistent weak layer, this avalanche problem may develop into a Deep Persistent Slab.