Up to a foot of dense new snow with 1.5 inches of moisture has fallen at the higher elevations since Sunday morning. This snowfall has been accompanied by strong west to west-southwest winds which has formed pockets of dense new wind slab on leeward aspects. These slabs lie upon slick old snow surfaces and could be human triggered in steep wind loaded avalanche starting zones. The new snow and wind has also increased the load on existing older slabs which lie upon buried weak layers of faceted snow. These persistent slabs could also be triggered by riders and skiers with severe consequences. The hazard will increase as the day warms.
Buried layers of faceted snow persist in the snowpack. Skiers and riders could trigger dense slabs with depths to three feet that fail on these weak layers. These dangerous persistent slabs exist on north through east to south facing slopes.
Pockets of new dense wind slabs up two feet in depth could be human triggered is steep wind loaded avalanche starting zones and cliff areas.
( Discussion is generated from the previous day's afternoon forecast. )The moist northwest flow is forecast to decrease overnight and result in diminishing snowfall and partial clearing on Tuesday. Additional accumulations of two to five inches are possible at the higher elevations. Temperatures will continue to be mild. Daytime highs are expected to rise into the 30s in the mountains and rise to near 40 degrees in the valleys. West-southwest winds will continue at speeds of 25 to 30 with gusts to 45 miles per hour along the highest ridge crests.Dense slabs with depths from 10 to 30 inches lie upon slick old snow surfaces and could be triggered by humans who venture into steep wind loaded avalanche starting zones. The deeper slabs can be found in the Greys River/Southwest Trails area. In the Continental Divide/Togwottee Pass area persistent slabs with depths to three feet can also be human triggered above an elevation of 9,000 feet in steep active avalanche paths that face north through east to south. The general avalanche hazard is expected to be MODERATE in the Teton and Togwotee Pass areas and CONSIDERABLE in the Greys River area.
