Avalanche forecast

Eastside Region

Eastern Sierra Avalanche Center
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Avalanche danger

Sun
Alpine
2 · Moderate
Treeline
2 · Moderate
Below
2 · Moderate
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Highlights

Wet avalanches will become possible as the snow softens. Monitor warming surfaces as you travel. In areas where the snow becomes wet and mushy, stay out of steep and extreme terrain. 

Avalanche problems

  • Loose Wet

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

    With a minimal surficial freeze overnight and warm air temperatures, snow may soften quickly today.  As surfaces soften, wet loose avalanches will become possible at all elevations. A small wet loose avalanche may be enough to trigger a more destructive wet slab avalanche. Monitor softening snow at the surface, and move to more conservative terrain if the surface become unsuportable, deep, and wet. Fresh rollerballs and natural avalanches indicate that wet loose avalanches will be possible to trigger.

    Wet Loose activity on Mono Jim Peak.

    Photo: Sean Smollen

  • Wet Slabs

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

    Free water has permeated our snowpack,  and the extent of its impact has varied across the zone. The most wet slab activity has occurred south of McGee, and over the past couple of days, we have seen a decline in natural activity. Generally, it appears wet slab avalanches are becoming unlikely. In low-elevation snowpacks across the range, old snow has melted significantly, and coverage is disappearing rapidly. In low-elevation areas with shallow coverage, water has drained to the ground, and it's no longer pooling at buried weak layers. At middle and upper elevations, we’ve seen increasing stability in buried weak layers, and surficial freezes have helped reduce the movement of free water. But without a full-blown overnight freeze across the zone, these avalanches cannot be ruled out completely. 

    If involved, a wet slab avalanche may be large to very large and unsurvivable. These avalanches are hard to predict, and uncertainty remains high. Smaller wet loose avalanches may be enough to trigger a larger, more consequential slab. It's worth reducing your exposure to problematic areas by avoiding steep terrain with wet surface snow.

    Recent Slab Avalanche, San Joaquin Ridge

    Photo: Steve Mace

Avalanche Discussion

It has been 5 days since we have had a significant freeze across the zone. Frozen, supportable surfaces are purely the result of radiation leaving the snowpack, cooling the surface snow enough to allow a slight refreeze. Cloud cover reduced our surficial freeze overnight, and decreasing cloud cover this morning will allow warming to ramp up quickly. Increasing afternoon winds may help keep surfaces cool, but without a hard overnight freeze, wet instabilities remain hazards. Be cognisant of the penetration your skis and feet have as you travel today, and reduce your exposure to steep slopes as the surface transitions to deep and wet snow.

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