Bollettino valanghe

Galena Summit & Eastern Mtns

Sawtooth Avalanche Center
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Pericolo valanghe

Sun
Alta quota
2 · Moderato
Limite del bosco
2 · Moderato
Sotto il limite
1 · Debole
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Non aggiornato — questo bollettino è scaduto 8 months ago. Stai vedendo condizioni passate, non il bollettino in corso.

In sintesi

Triggering large avalanches is not out of the question. You can greatly reduce your risk by avoiding steep, wind-affected, rocky slopes with variable snow depths.

Problemi valanghivi

  • Persistent Slabs

    • Alta quota
    • Limite del bosco
    • Sotto il limite del bosco
    Probabilità
    Unlikely
    Dimensione
    1.5–2.5

    While unlikely, we can't write off triggering large avalanches in middle and upper elevation terrain. Unfortunately, you may not receive any obvious signs of instability before triggering one of these lingering monsters. We are most concerned with deeply buried weak facets found near the ground on middle and upper elevation slopes, especially those facing away from the sun. 

    Triggering a slide on this layer is most likely on steep windy and/or rocky slopes where the snowpack depth is variable and in more sheltered terrain where the snowpack is around 3 feet deep.

    Additional Discussion: You may be able to trigger wind slab avalanches that formed near ridgelines and in cross-loaded areas on the sides of gullies.  Look for recent cornice growth, dunes, or ripples in the snow surface and listen for hollow-drum-like sounds as indicators that you've found wind slabs. These may break wider than expected due to crust interfaces in the upper snowpack.

    (12/30/2025) Large avalanche in Wilson Ck and another on Duncan Ridge. Photo: Sawtooth Avalanche Center

Avalanche Discussion

We're inching our way towards lower danger, but the SAC team still gets the heeby-jeebies when thinking about the high-consequences of triggering an avalanche on early December weak layers. The pesky facets are buried under a whole heap of holiday storm snow and are showing clear signs of healing, but they haven't quite gone dormant enough for us to write them off.

In areas with uniform snowpacks and consistently deep snow depths, the chances of triggering a large avalanche are low. Sliding and riding on steep rocky slopes with wind-affected snow and variable snow depths ups the chances you'll trigger a large avalanche and will probably feel a lot like gambling... so are you feeling lucky? That's not a gamble we'd take right now, especially with the knowledge that those deeply buried weak layers are headed in the right direction. Being patient and keeping diligent in avoidance of those tempting slopes during these drawn-out transitional times makes the fruits of future snowpack stability all the more rewarding.

We'd like to offer a special thanks to all those that submitted observations over the past couple of weeks! The quantity and quality of observations really helped us put the puzzle of avalanche conditions together, especially during the wild holiday multi-day storm event!

Regioni coperte