East Slopes South

Expect another warm, windy, and cloudy day. Shallow and patchy snow cover continues to limit access and create difficult travel conditions. A storm will arrive Saturday night bringing new snow and an uptick in avalanche danger by Sunday.

Saturday will be a transitionary day weather-wise, and avalanches will be unlikely. Change comes Saturday night with the onset of precipitation and a much-needed return to winter. Most areas have rough surfaces with thick crusts or a very thin snowpack. If you travel into the upper elevations, take note of the surface conditions. Snowfall is expected to begin late Saturday and continue into Sunday with 4-8in of new snow possible. Going into the storm, it will be important to track any weak snow and slick crusts as they may become buried and create slab avalanche problems by the end of the weekend. If you are out in the mountains, let us know what you find by submitting an observation.

The East South zone hasn't received much snow since early January. It is nearing a point where low elevations have little to no snow, and you can expect challenging travel on rough, icy surfaces in areas with continuous snow. Access to higher elevations with a more robust snowpack may require travel over dirt and bare ground for significant distances, and utilizing summer trails may be the best option. An observer near the Bumping Lake area recently found little snow below 5500ft and dust-on-crust conditions above that. Travel cautiously, especially at lower elevations, to avoid impacts with rocks or stumps, and falls into holes.