Avalanche forecast

Eastside Region

Eastern Sierra Avalanche Center
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Avalanche danger

Wed
Alpine
2 · Moderate
Treeline
2 · Moderate
Below
1 · Low
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Out of date — this forecast expired 4 years ago. You’re viewing past conditions, not the current bulletin.

Highlights

Use caution on steep leeward slopes where blowing snow has built textured wind slabs on all aspects. Drifts will be most sensitive at higher elevations on south and west-facing slopes. You can avoid triggering an avalanche below the ridgeline or in a cross-loaded gully by sticking to the soft snow in sheltered terrain.

Avalanche problems

  • Wind Slabs

    • Alpine
    • Treeline
    • Below treeline
    Likelihood
    Possible
    Size
    1–2

    Slabs that formed from southwest winds 2 days ago have become stubborn. These are most common near treeline and isolated on lower elevation moraines. Northeast winds blew hard at upper elevations yesterday loading southerly aspects and cross-loading some features above treeline. The higher you climb, the more likely you are to find dense, rippled drifts that can still crack under your weight. Decreasing wind today means that you can’t look for blowing snow to point to the most dangerous slopes. Instead, look at the terrain and the snow surface. Be suspect of features that encourage drifting such as the leeward sides of corniced ridgelines, gully features, and cross-loaded depressions. Wind slabs will be textured and stiffer than the snow in sheltered terrain. That’s where you’ll find more consistent, softer riding.  

    (2/6/2023)

    The rounded, dune-like shape of wind slabs can make them easy to avoid.

Avalanche Discussion

The last storm dropped the most snow in the northern half of the forecast area. That’s also where the most blowing snow drifted - first from southwest winds, then northeast - over the past 72 hours. Wind slabs have become stubborn, though some are still cracking underfoot and propagating in snowpack tests. In most places, recent drifts sit atop old crusts or soft recent snow. On isolated slopes near treeline, they sit on a weak layer of facets.

Sugary facets, or a facet/crust combo, lie underneath recent storm snow on shady and sheltered slopes near and below treeline. In the isolated areas where wind slabs rest atop facets, they may propagate wider than you’d expect. It’s worth monitoring the new snow atop these weak grains. It may be incohesive now but could become less predictable and more dangerous as it consolidates into a slab with warmer temperatures. Use hand pits and probe with your pole to see if the newer snow is settling into a cohesive layer. In the unlikely event that you feel a collapse, or see shooting cracks in sheltered terrain, take a big step back to lower slope angles.

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