Newberry

Avalanches will continue to be unlikely on Sunday in the Newberry Monument zone. Isolated pockets of deeper wind drifted snow at high elevations are where you may see enough dry snow to have a small avalanche. If you encounter deeper drifts of unstable snow, be aware that low season conditions could heighten the consequence of getting knocked off your feet in a small slide.

Touring around the Monument on Saturday, it was clear that the heavy rain from 1/1 followed by below freezing temps resulted in a widespread ice crust layer. At higher elevations, this ice crust was quite thick and lying underneath about an inch of new snow that fell Saturday morning. This recent storm snow fell at warmer temperatures, resulting in the relatively wet and "dense" new snow that  tends to bond well to crust layers. Consequently, I did not notice any red flags in my travels. In loaded zones at higher elevations beneath ridgetops, I only observed a maximum two inches of recent snow on this crust. With another ~1" dusting forecasted for overnight Saturday, all signs are pointing towards not having enough ingredients to surface any true avalanche problems for the day. That being said, if you chose to enter avalance terrain in the monument, always use safe travel techniques, and keep your snow brain clued in to any red flags such as shooting cracks, blowing snow, and even above-forecast snowfall. If you notice any of these warning signs, back down and seek lower angle or windward terrain.