Tetons

The General Avalanche Hazard is MODERATE at Mid and Upper elevations. Slabs to two feet in depth rest in steep, lee areas from the weekend's snow and strong Southwest to Northwest winds. The new snow sits on buried surface hoar and light density snow. Larger triggers like snowmobiles or more than one skier at a time on a slope may be necessary to start avalanches. At Lower elevations the Hazard is LOW where above freezing temperatures and settlement have helped to stabilize the snow. Always carry rescue gear when traveling in avalanche terrain and remember that this forecast is general and evaluation of the stability of any given slope is the responsibility of the backcountry user.

Snow should be on the increase across the northwest mountains tonight and continue into Thursday. Snow could be heavy at times tonight with 5 to 8 inches possible across the mountains and 2 to 5 inches in the valleys. Another 2 to 4 inches in the mountains and 1 to 2 inches are expected to fall during the day. The general avalanche hazard is expected to increase to CONSIDERABLE with the additional load of this new snow. New soft slabs will form on leeward aspects upon existing surface slabs and are likely to be easily triggered. In the Continental Divide/Togwotee Pass and Southwest Trails/Greys River areas deep slab instabilities persist in addition to surface slab concerns. Dangerous deep slabs to the ground could be triggered on steep slopes that have a well developed basal layer of weak faceted snow.