Yesterday, a snowmobiler died in an avalanche near Upper Palisades Lake in eastern Idaho. Details are limited at this time, and more information will be provided as it becomes available. Our deepest condolences go out to the friends, family and rescuers involved. Skiers and riders could easily trigger small to large wind slabs and loose snow sluffs in steep, avalanche terrain. Weak layers of faceted snow remain a serious concern, and large to very large persistent slab avalanches could either be triggered directly by backcountry travelers or step down from the release of a wind slab. Continue to be vigilant with your snowpack evaluation and conservative terrain choices.
Strong, westerly to northwesterly ridgetop winds over the last two days have continued to form wind slabs in leeward terrain. On steep, wind loaded slopes, backcountry travelers could trigger these slabs with depths ranging from one to two feet.
On steep avalanche prone slopes, persistent slab avalanches could fail on buried weak layers of faceted snow. These dangerous slabs could be up to four feet deep above 7,500 feet. Below 7,500 feet, slab depths are expected to range from one to two feet. These slabs could be triggered by the weight of a single person or after the release of a wind slab.
( Discussion is generated from the previous day's afternoon forecast. )Snowfall will taper off overnight as today’s shortwave exits the region. Overnight lows in the mountains will be near 10 degrees before rising into the low 20s during the day on Saturday. Westerly to northwesterly ridgetop winds will range from 10 to 20 miles per hour.The general avalanche hazard is expected to remain Considerable above 7,500 feet on Saturday. Skiers and riders could easily trigger wind slabs ranging in depth from one to two feet in steep, wind loaded terrain. Persistent weak layers of faceted snow remain a concern, particularly in the Togwotee Pass forecast zone. These persistent slabs might be up to four feet deep, and could either be triggered directly by backcountry travelers or step down from the release of a wind slab. On Saturday, continue to be vigilant with your snowpack evaluation and conservative terrain choices. Below 7,500 feet, skiers and riders will have some potential of triggering slab avalanches up to two feet deep.
