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Avalanche Forecast

Archived

Jan 7th, 2025–Jan 8th, 2025

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

Regions

Lizard-Flathead, Flathead, Lizard.

Strong winds are redistributing available snow into fresh wind slabs at upper elevations

Minimize exposure to avalanche terrain and overhead hazards during periods of heavy wind loading

Confidence

Moderate

Avalanche Summary

On Tuesday, a skier-triggered size 1 wind slab avalanche was reported. The avalanche was 15 to 20 cm deep and occurred in a steep north-facing couloir. See MIN for details!

If you head out in the backcountry, let us know what you are seeing by submitting a MIN report!

Snowpack Summary

Strong west winds are building fresh wind slabs in lee terrain at upper elevations. Unconsolidated snow can still be found in sheltered areas. Below this is 30 to 50 cm of settling snow.

Below 1500 m elevation a previously moist surface is now dense and refrozen.

The mid and lower snowpack is generally well-settled and stable.

Snow depths at treeline range from 140 to 220 cm.

Weather Summary

Tuesday Night

Cloudy with light flurries, 1 to 2 cm. 30 to 50 km/h west ridgetop wind. Treeline temperature -5 °C.

Wednesday

Cloudy with light flurries, 1 cm. 15 to 25 km/h northwest ridgetop wind. Treeline temperature -8 °C.

Thursday

A mix of sun and cloud. 10 to 25 km/h southwest ridgetop wind. Treeline temperature -6 °C.

Friday

Cloudy with light flurries, 1 to 4 cm. 30 to 50 km/h west ridgetop wind. Treeline temperature -7 °C

More details can be found in the Mountain Weather Forecast.

Terrain and Travel Advice

  • Pay attention to the wind; once it starts to blow, sensitive wind slabs are likely to form.
  • Avoid freshly wind-loaded features, especially near ridge crests, rollovers, and in steep terrain.
  • Seek out sheltered terrain where new snow hasn't been affected by wind.

Problems

Wind Slabs

Wind Slab avalanches are the release of a cohesive layer of snow (a slab) formed by the wind. Wind typically transports snow from the upwind sides of terrain features and deposits snow on the downwind side. Wind slabs are often smooth and rounded and sometimes sound hollow, and can range from soft to hard. Wind slabs that form over a persistent weak layer (surface hoar, depth hoar, or near-surface facets) may be termed Persistent Slabs or may develop into Persistent Slabs.