Continued snowfall and warming temperatures have created slabs of new storm snow. You are most likely to trigger one of these avalanches on slopes where new snow lies atop a crust. You can avoid these avalanches by choosing terrain less than 30 degrees.
This forecast is sponsored by Magic Woodland Studio.
Over a foot of new snow has fallen since Wednesday (3/22). As temperatures rise and this snow has time to settle, it will form a slab. These slabs will sit upon a slick, firm melt-freeze that was buried on Wednesday. These avalanches should be soft, easy to trigger, and have the potential to run far on the underlying crust.
Soft storm slab avalanche.
In areas where dry loose (powder) snow has accumulated on steep slopes, it is likely you will trigger a dry loose avalanche or sluff. These sluffs have the potential to carry or push us into rocks, trees, gullies, or off of cliffs. If you see fan-shaped avalanches or your machine or boards are creating waves of soft fluffy snow as you travel on slopes, you've found the dry loose avalanche problem. Terrain less than 30 degrees will offer good riding conditions and keep you out of harm's way.
(3/23/2023)
Small skier dry loose avalanche triggered on a test slope in the Northern Elkhorns.
Photo: TG
Storm totals now exceed 12" since Wednesday (3/22). This storm started with wind sufficient to build slabs and covered up melt-freeze crusts. As the storm begins to taper today, the urge to step out into more consequential terrain will be present. Many avalanche problems exist and the mountains need time to adjust to this new load. Careful snowpack evaluation, cautious route-finding, and conservative decision-making are essential.
It is late March and the sun is strong. As temperatures warm today and the sun makes an appearance, the chance for Loose Wet avalanche problems on sun-exposed slopes will increase. If you see rollerballs or pinwheels, seek shadier colder terrain.
Thank you for your observations and please let us know what you see out there today!
