The general avalanche hazard remains CONSIDERABLE above an elevation of 7,500 feet and is LOW below that elevation where snow depths remain shallow. The snowpack structure is poor. Recently accumulated new snow lies upon buried layers of surface hoar and a base of weak faceted snow. Large slab avalanches are likely to be human triggered on steep avalanche prone slopes.
At the mid and upper elevations humans who venture onto steep slopes that have not experienced recent avalanche activity could trigger large slab avalanches that fail on persistent weak layers. These slabs could have depths of two to five feet and could fail to the ground.
( Discussion is generated from the previous day's afternoon forecast. )Areas of light to moderate snowfall will continue to slowly spread south and east overnight. This steady snowfall will end on Tuesday morning, however periods of light snowfall and flurries will continue into Wednesday. Another four to eight inches of light density is likely to accumulate in most mountain locations during the next 24 hours. On Tuesday temperatures will remain mostly in the single digits. Winds will veer from the southwest to the northwest and are forecast to be light at five to ten miles per hour.Areas that have received the most new snow are likely to experience shallow loose snow sluffs from cliff areas. In the big peaks these loose snow sluffs could entrain significant volumes of loose snow in terrain with long sustained steep pitches. Some very soft, new surface slab formation is possible in areas exposed to any significant wind. This new snow will add a load to existing persistent slabs and increase their sensitivity to human triggers. These persistent slabs could be human triggered to depths of one to three feet on the late January drought snow surfaces and in areas with a poor snowpack structure these slabs could fail to depths of three to five feet on buried layers of weak faceted snow. The general avalanche hazard is expected to be MODERATE in the Teton area and CONSIDERABLE in the Togwotee Pass/Continental Divide and the Southwest Trails/Greys River areas.
