Avalanche forecast

Salt River and Wyoming Ranges

Bridger-Teton Avalanche Center
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Avalanche danger

Alpine
3 · Considerable
Treeline
3 · Considerable
Below
2 · Moderate
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Highlights

Moderate danger exists this morning on steep, high elevation northerly aspects where triggering the persistent weak layer 1-3’ down remains possible. Temperatures will rise significantly today, wetting and weakening the remaining dry snow. The risk of triggering avalanches will rise accordingly with exposure to the sun and rising air temperatures driving the probability of triggering upwards. Bring your snow savvy today and you’ll find safer riding in dry soft snow on shaded, lower angled slopes and corn skiing on sunnier aspects that froze overnight. Leave your snow savvy at home and you may run into slow, but powerful loose wet avalanches or wind slabs losing their grip on a slick melt freeze crust on lee ridge tops. Mind your aspects and avoid boot top wet snow, slopes generating large rollerballs and slopes beneath hanging cornices. The avalanche danger may rise to Considerable as temperatures warm as various types of human triggered avalanches become likely and natural avalanches possible. Below 8,000 feet the danger will rise to Moderate with wet, loose avalanches likely.

Avalanche problems

  • Persistent Slabs

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

    Weak layers formed throughout the forecast area during the dry months of January and February. In March, a series of storms built up slabs that in some cases have been large enough to activate those weak layers, making them easier to trigger. These weak layers are one to three feet deep. There have been multiple large natural avalanches and several close calls with machine triggered avalanches involving this layer. This avalanche problem is more likely to be encountered in steep terrain above 8,000' on the northern half of the compass and in terrain that avalanched in early January. Uncertainty exists around triggering this avalanche type but warming will make it easier to trigger.

Avalanche Discussion

( Discussion is generated from the previous day's afternoon forecast. )Warming will continue to weaken the snowpack and send free water into deeper weak layers and down to the melt freeze crusts that exist in the upper snowpack. As dry snow becomes saturated, expect more and larger wet loose avalanches, and possibly some cornice failures. Large and dangerous natural avalanches one to three feet thick will be possible in all forecast zones in the afternoon tomorrow where slabs sit over the weak January layer. Human triggered avalanches will become likely in the afternoon as heating occurs at upper elevations in all forecast areas. The danger rating will rise to Considerable in the afternoon. Consider roller balls, loose wet avalanches and a saturated snow surface as warning signs that larger and more dangerous avalanches could occur.

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