Avalanche forecast

Salt River and Wyoming Ranges

Bridger-Teton Avalanche Center
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Avalanche danger

Mon
Alpine
3 · Considerable
Treeline
2 · Moderate
Below
1 · Low
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Highlights

Skiers and riders have the potential to trigger avalanches that have formed during this week’s snowfall. Watching out for areas where recent loading has occurred is the best way to avoid this hazard.  Areas of loading are most likely to be found near peaks and ridge crests, and  in or under cliff areas above 8000 feet. The chance to trigger deeper and larger avalanches, involving old weak layers that are buried in the snowpack, also continues in the Snake River, Salt, and Wyoming mountain ranges.  Avoid impacting the starting zones of avalanche paths and watch for any indication of these old instablities, such as noting where avalanches may have recently occurred that are large and have deep crowns. 

Avalanche problems

  • Wind Slabs

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

    Over 30 inches of snow has fallen over the last 5 days in the Wyoming range. Changing wind directions have loaded slabs on a variety of aspects at the mid and high elevations. Soft slab avalanches could be triggered that are shallow, failing on density breaks within this storm, or include several days worth of new snow and have depths to three feet.  Watch for new loading to occur today as winds are to veer to the northeast and snowfall is to continue.  These slabs will be most sensitive near high elevation ridges and peaks. 

  • Persistent Slabs

    • Alpine
    • Treeline
    • Below treeline
    Likelihood
    Possible
    Size
    1.5–3

    The persistent weak layers that have been a concern throughout the season and have been active on previous storm cycles continue to pose a threat. Although failure of these layers has become less likely, the possibility conitnues in hard to predict terrain that simply has a weaker structure than other similar terrain. The most likely scenario for release of one of these deep avalanches would be if a slope was either impacted by a large force such as the triggering of a wind slab or if a thin, weak spot on a slope was crossed. If triggered these slabs are likely to be large to very large hard slabs and could have depths to over 5 feet. 

Avalanche Discussion

Happy New Year. The recent week has been a typical mid-winter storm cycle for western Wyoming.  Periods of instability have occurred but generally been short lived where at certain points, slabs can be easily skier triggered and then just a few hours later, be stuck on and adhered to the snowpack. Slabs have mostly been failing on mid-storm density breaks and been most sensitive just following periods of rapid loading driven by snowfall, wind and sometimes by warming temperatures as well.  Winds are forecast to become northeasterly today and a lot of loose snow is available to be tranported by the wind. This will provide the potential to load different terrain features than are typically loaded at the mid and high elevations. The persistent slab problem is being less active than during previous storm cycles but is still a real concern in this forecast area . As this storm cycle ends, evidence of activity involving old snow layers will help to determine how much of threat it does or does not continue to be.  Low elevation slopes are mostly stable and avalanches are not expected there except for in isolated pockets in the steepest terrain that recieved significant snowfall yesterday.

Regions covered