Avalanche forecast

Central Sierra Nevada

Sierra Avalanche Center
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Avalanche danger

Mon
Alpine
2 · Moderate
Treeline
2 · Moderate
Below
2 · Moderate
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Out of date — this forecast expired 4 years ago. You’re viewing past conditions, not the current bulletin.

Highlights

As the day warms up, wet snow on sunny slopes could slide downhill gathering snow as it moves. In some cases, these wet loose avalanches could cause problems for people. Once you see or feel wet snow, it is time to move to slopes not steep enough for snow to slide downhill.

Avalanche problems

  • Loose Wet

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

    Sunny weather with warmer temperatures today will create wet snow on many slopes. Rapid warming yesterday and again today could result in more widespread wet loose avalanche activity. These avalanches entrain more snow as they move downslope, so long, steep slopes produce larger wet loose avalanches. In some cases, they could involve most of the recent snow and grow large enough to bury or injure a person. Steep, open, sunny slopes that face E-SE-S-SW-W hold the best potential for wet loose avalanche activity as the day warms up. Some wet snow may also form on a few sun-exposed NW-N-NE aspects as the sun climbs higher in the sky. Wet snow often forms around rocks or in gullies first and then moves to sunny open slopes. 

    Look for signs of wet snow as you travel. When you start to see rollerballs, pinwheels, or sticky wet snow, it is time to move into lower-angle terrain.

Avalanche Discussion

  • Frozen melt-freeze crusts on windward aspects should have made it hard for last night's SW winds to transport snow and prevented new wind slab formation. 
  • Weak snow (facets) formed in the upper portion of the snowpack during the 38 day Jan/Feb dry spell on some wind-sheltered NW-N-NE aspects. The recent storm buried this weak layer. It now exists under 6 to 12 inches of settled storm snow. The recent storm snow continues to settle and become more of a cohesive slab above this weak layer. No avalanches have been reported on this weak layer so far, but a few signs of instability have occurred in very isolated areas since the storm.  On a regional scale, this weak layer is isolated in distribution and stubborn to trigger making avalanches on this layer unlikely.

Regions covered