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Avalanche Forecast

Archived

Mar 5th, 2026–Mar 6th, 2026

Alpine
Natural avalanches unlikely, human triggered possible.
Treeline
Natural avalanches possible, human triggered probable.
Below Treeline
Natural avalanches unlikely, human triggered possible.
Alpine
Natural avalanches unlikely, human triggered possible.
Treeline
Natural avalanches possible, human triggered probable.
Below Treeline
Natural avalanches unlikely, human triggered possible.
Alpine
Natural avalanches possible, human triggered probable.
Treeline
Natural avalanches possible, human triggered probable.
Below Treeline
Natural avalanches possible, human triggered probable.

Regions

Dogtooth, East Purcell.

A reactive persistent weak layer remains the primary concern for the region - especially around treeline

Stick to low-angle slopes and avoid exposing yourself to steep terrain from above

Confidence

Moderate

  • We are confident that there are persistent slabs in the snowpack, but uncertain about how likely they are to trigger.

Avalanche Summary

Wednesday

With the warmer temperatures and sun, there were several reports of wet loose avalanche activity up to size 1.5, and sluffing and pin-wheeling. Explosive triggered cornice and, slab avalanches were reported near Golden.

Tuesday
A skier remotely triggered a size 1.5 persistent slab at treeline from 50 m away.

Looking forward
Natural avalanches are unlikely, but riders triggering slabs remains possible to likely.

Snowpack Summary

The recent snow is covering previously wind-affected surfaces. Solar-facing slopes and lower elevations have a surface crust.

A persistent weak layer of surface hoar or crust is buried 40 to 60 cm, with deeper areas like the Dogtooth Range reporting this layer up to 100 cm deep. Recent persistent slab avalanches have failed on this layer, many triggered in sheltered openings at treeline and below.

The mid and lower snowpack are generally well settled. In shallow snowpack areas, large facets or depth hoar are present at the bottom of the snowpack.

Weather Summary

Thursday Night
Mostly clear skies. 40 km/h west ridgetop wind. Treeline temperature -7 °C.

Friday
Mostly cloudy. 1 cm of snow. 40 km/h west ridgetop wind. Treeline temperature -6 °C.

Saturday
Mostly cloudy. 1 to 3 mm of precipitation as snow or rain at treeline. 60 km/h west ridgetop wind. Treeline temperature -1 °C. Freezing level 2100 m.

Sunday
Mix of sun and clouds. 5 to 15 mm of precipitation as snow or rain at treeline. 60 km/h west ridgetop wind. Treeline temperature -1 °C. Freezing level 2100 m.

More details can be found in the Mountain Weather Forecast.

Terrain and Travel Advice

  • Watch for signs of instability like whumpfing, hollow sounds, shooting cracks, or recent avalanches.
  • Be aware of the potential for remote triggering and large avalanches due to buried surface hoar.
  • Be careful as you transition into wind-affected terrain.

Problems

Persistent Slabs

Persistent Slab avalanches are the release of a cohesive layer of snow (a slab) in the middle to upper snowpack, when the bond to an underlying persistent weak layer breaks. Persistent layers include: surface hoar, depth hoar, near-surface facets, or faceted snow. Persistent weak layers can continue to produce avalanches for days, weeks or even months, making them especially dangerous and tricky. As additional snow and wind events build a thicker slab on top of the persistent weak layer, this avalanche problem may develop into a Deep Persistent Slab.