Salt River and Wyoming Ranges

Temperatures are starting off 5 to 10 degrees colder than yesterday morning. Cooler temperatures and clear skies overnight allowed for a hard freeze of snow surfaces, and the snowpack is mostly stable this morning. Aside from some sluffing of the new snow at the higher elevations, the threat of wet loose slides will not return until supportable crusts break down. Monitor temperatures and the impact of the sun, and transition to colder terrain when crusts begin to break down.

( Discussion is generated from the previous day's afternoon forecast. )As a transitory ridge of high pressure moves into the region, flow aloft will veer to the northwest overnight, and skies will continue to clear with partly cloudy to mostly sunny skies present by Sunday morning. Overnight lows in the mountains will be in the teens before rising back into the upper 20s during the day. Valley temperatures will dip into the low 20s before sunrise and then rebound into the mid 40s in the afternoon. Westerly ridgetop winds will range from 10 to 20 miles per hour.The general avalanche hazard is expected to be LOW Sunday morning. With colder temperatures and partially to mostly clear skies overnight, snow surfaces should experience a hard freeze at all elevations, which will result in a mostly stable snowpack starting off on Sunday. As the day progresses, warming temperatures and sunshine will impact the new snow in the mountains, and very shallow wet loosing sluffing will be likely. Softening of frozen crusts will beginning in the valleys before climbing in elevation as the day warms, particularly on sunlit aspects. Seek out colder terrain when supportable crusts begin to break down to avoid wet loose slides involving the older snow.