Bulletin d’avalanche

Eastside Region

Eastern Sierra Avalanche Center
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Danger d’avalanche

Sun
Alpin
2 · Modéré
Limite forestière
2 · Modéré
Sous la limite
1 · Faible
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Périmé — ce bulletin a expiré 6 months ago. Vous consultez des conditions passées, pas le bulletin en cours.

Points saillants

It remains possible to trigger a persistent slab avalanche today. Small, fresh wind slabs may form on lee slopes above treeline. You can avoid these problems by steering clear of steep slopes near and above treeline on the north half of the compass.

Problèmes avalancheux

  • Persistent Slabs

    • Alpin
    • Limite forestière
    • Sous la limite forestière
    Probabilité
    Possible
    Taille
    1–2.5

    A month of dry weather created a weak and faceted snowpack in many places throughout the forecast area. The poorest structure exists near and above treeline on NW, N and E aspects. From 2/10 -2/12, the region received 6-24" of new snow.  Thus far, we've seen few results on buried, old snow. The problem with persistent grains is that they persist. Facets and depth hoar do not follow the same stabilization trends as storm instabilities, and feedback may be limited until an avalanche occurs. Furthermore, persistent slab avalanches can be remotely triggered, fracture higher into lower-angle terrain, and connect around terrain features that would otherwise confine different avalanche problems.

    We have lower confidence around this problem. In most places, it would seem that the new snow has not yet formed a slab capable of creating an avalanche. Increased wind, settlement, and warming could be enough to increase slab strength. 

    Remote triggers, shooting cracks, and "rolling" collapses that seem to continue off into the distance are all signs that you have likely found the persistent slab avalanche problem.

    In times of heightened uncertainty, a tried and true risk management strategy is to increase your safety margins. Currently, you can do that by treating polar slopes near and above treeline with more suspicion than you would with a storm or wind slab problem. 

  • Wind Slabs

    • Alpin
    • Limite forestière
    • Sous la limite forestière
    Probabilité
    Possible
    Taille
    1–2

    Increasing southwest winds and light snow available for transport may be enough to create small, fresh wind slabs today above treeline. These slabs will form where southwest winds blow snow onto northwest through southeast slopes, and in favored terrain features such as gullies and couloirs. New wind slabs may fail on weak, persistent grains and act unpredictably.

    Look for blowing snow, fresh drifts, and cracking around your skis as indicators of new wind slab formation. 

     

    (2/11/2026)

Avalanche Discussion

It's a holiday weekend, the weather is pleasant, and we just received our first snowfall in a month.  If you remember two things this weekend, remember that current avalanche conditions are tricky, and most avalanche incidents occur after new snow following a period of extended dry weather.

In many places, the recent new snow now sits on top of a weak, old snowpack. While we have seen limited avalanche activity on these old layers thus far, subtle changes in the weather like an uptick in winds or an increase in temperatures, can be enough to build a slab where one did not exist prior.

Persistent slab avalanches can be unpredictable and surprise skiers and riders. Its quite possible that you can go out today, have a great day of skiing, and receive no feedback regarding a persistent problem. Observations suggest that this has been the case over the past couple of days. Nonetheless, it remains possible to trigger a suprising, persistent slab avalanche today without any red flags or warning signs ahead of time.

When snowpack is the question, terrain is the answer. If your goal today is to increase your confidence and avoid avalanches, you can stay off steep slopes, and terrain connected to steep slopes. Theres lots of good skiing on lower-angle terrain currently, and there's a lot more snow coming in the next several days.

Régions couvertes