Tetons

At the mid and upper elevations air temperatures at 5 AM are in the mid 20s and are 10 to 15 degrees warmer then they were yesterday morning. Rising temperatures and sunshine will soften snow surfaces and increase the hazard as the day warms. Humans who venture onto steep slopes after significant warming occurs could trigger wet loose slides and/or pockets of wet slab up to two feet in depth. At the lower elevations temperatures were in the upper 20s to mid 30s this morning. Wet slides are possible on very steep slopes that still have deep snow.

The high pressure ridge will continue to build into the region bringing dryer conditions and warmer temperatures. Skies are expected to be partly cloudy overnight and on Thursday. Temperatures are forecast to drop into the mid to upper 20s overnight. If skies are clear the overnight lows will be lower. If skies are cloudy the overnight lows will be higher. On Thursday temperatures will rise to near 40 at the upper elevations, well into the 40s at the mid elevations and possibly into the 50s in the valleys. Winds will be west-southwest at 10 to 15 miles per hour.Warm temperatures and sunshine will soften snow surfaces and increase the avalanche hazard earlier in the day. The potential for wet loose and wet slabs avalanches to occur will increase as the day warms. The general avalanche hazard is anticipated to increase to MODERATE in the Teton Area and could increase to CONSIDERABLE in the Continental Divide/Togwotee Pass and Southwest Trails/Greys River Areas. Steep slopes and their run-out zones should be avoided after significant warming occurs.