Avalanche forecast

Salmon River Mountains

Payette Avalanche Center
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Avalanche danger

Sat
Alpine
3 · Considerable
Treeline
2 · Moderate
Below
2 · Moderate
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Highlights

Watch for stiff wind drifts on east-facing slopes, near corniced ridgelines & steep rollovers. You could trigger wind slabs 12+ inches thick above 6,500 feet. Triggering a 2-3 foot-thick persistent slab avalanche is becoming unlikely, but not impossible. Identify areas in the terrain where persistent slabs exist and practice safe travel habits. 

Avalanche problems

  • Wind Slabs

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

    6-10 inches of snow (1" SWE) have fallen across the Salmon River Mountain zone over the past 48 hours. New snow is high-density (heavier) and has been accompanied by strong W/SW winds. You can expect to find wind slabs greater than 12 inches thick on east-facing slopes above 6,500 feet. Wind slabs will be most sensitive just below corniced ridgelines. Look for clues of wind-affected snow such as drifts, dunes, pillows, and freshly-built cornices. Watch for signs of instability like shooting cracks from your skis, board, or sled. If you're observing signs of a wind slab, find another aspect away from wind-drifted snow.

    New snow has fallen on crusts across multiple aspects and elevations. Pay attention to how well the new snow has bonded to the underlying crusts before committing to steep slopes. Strong winds and local terrain features can alter the prevailing wind direction. Pay attention to cross-loading and wind-loading on unsuspecting slopes.

    (3/12/2026)

    Strong WSW winds were moving snow through most of the day above 7,000'.

    Photo: George Halcom

  • Persistent Slabs

    • Alpine
    • Treeline
    • Below treeline
    Likelihood
    Unlikely
    Size
    1.5–2.5

    Triggering a large persistent slab avalanche has become unlikely. Unlikely does not mean impossible. A layer of surface hoar buried on 2/14 now sits about 2-3 feet deep. This layer was responsible for many large avalanches over several weeks during late February. These persistent slab avalanches occurred mainly on wind-loaded terrain that faced NW–NE–E above 7,000 feet. You're most likely to trigger a persistent slab avalanche in steep, wind-loaded terrain where the slab is thin (think shallow, rocky terrain). Triggering a 2-3 feet thick avalanche would be destructive with bad outcomes. This is the classic low likelihood/high consequence scenario.

    Signs of instability may be absent, and slopes with multiple tracks could still produce a large avalanche. Reduce your risk by identifying areas where this problem exists (upper elevation, north-facing, rocky, wind-affected alpine terrain, with slopes steeper than about 35°). Travel through this terrain should be conservative and intentional. Be especially careful where these terrain features overlap with terrain traps like trees, rocks, and gullies. Spread out and travel one at a time in avalanche terrain.

    (2/26/2026)

    Riders remote triggered this D2.5 avalanche near frog lake north of McCall on Thursday Feb 26th.

    Photo: Payette Avalanche Center

Avalanche Discussion

A potent atmospheric river has taken aim at the Pacific NW and northern Rockies. Unfortunately, our forecast area has remained just south of all the fun. Over the past 48 hours, the Salmon River Mountain zone has received 6-10 inches of new snow. New snow has been high-density (10-20%) and has been accompanied by strong W/SW winds. Before this storm, widespread melt-freeze crusts were observed across multiple aspects and elevations. Depending on the aspect and elevation, new snow may not be bonding well to underlying crusts. Dig into the new snow with your hand or pole to see how well it's bonding to recently buried crusts. 

Continue to hedge your bets today by carefully identifying terrain where persistent slabs may be lurking (steep, rocky, north-facing slopes, above 7,000 feet, that are wind-loaded). The only sure way to outsmart this avalanche problem is by avoidance. You can identify terrain where this problem exists and choose to avoid that terrain. You're unlikely to observe signs of instability, and previous tracks on a slope don't indicate it's inherently safe. With deeper, persistent slabs, snowpack tests may provide inconclusive results. Never base a go or no-go decision on one single point of data (i.e., one snowpack test). If avoidance is not your style and you're losing patience with the lingering, persistent slab problem, then you need to be intentional about how you move through the mountains. Safe travel practices are how we build wider margins of safety. Safe travel includes things like: checking to make sure everyone is carrying adequate rescue gear, spreading out and traveling one at a time on steep slopes, regrouping in safe areas away from runouts, identifying and avoiding terrain traps, and developing a plan with your travel partners. 

If you're out in the mountains, submit an observation on our website or through the Avy App. Tag us #payetteavy

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