Strong winds and new snow overnight have increased the avalanche hazard. Fresh wind slab avalanches can triggered on a variety of aspects. Above an elevation of 8,500 feet deep persistent slab avalanches can also be triggered by snowmobilers and skiers on steep avalanche prone slopes. A careful assessment of the snowpack and conservative terrain choices are essential for safe travel in avalanche terrain.
Strong westerly winds are drifting snow onto leeward aspects. At the higher elevations wind slab avalanches one to three feet in depth could be triggered by humans on steep avalanche prone slopes. At the lower elevations (below 8,000 feet) pockets of wind slab up to 18 inches in depth could be human triggered on isolated terrain features.
Strong winds and recent new snow continue to increase the load on weak layers of faceted snow that persist near the base of the snowpack. Dangerous hard slab avalanches up to four feet in depth could be triggered by a person on this problem layer. These deep slab avalanches are more likely to fail on northwesterly through northeasterly aspects and could step down from the release of a wind slab. Being caught in one of these slides could result in a fatality.
( Discussion is generated from the previous day's afternoon forecast. )Skies will remain cloudy with periods of light to moderate snowfall. Temperatures will be in the single digits and teens in the mountains and in the teens and 20's in the valleys. Westerly winds are forecast to increase to 20 to 30 miles per hour with higher gusts.At the higher elevations skiers, snowboarders and snowmobilers could trigger wind slab avalanches in steep wind-loaded avalanche starting zones. These slabs could be 1 to 3 feet deep and have been formed by southwest to west winds. Humans could also trigger deep persistent slabs up to 5 feet deep on a basal layer of faceted snow. Triggering one of these dangerous slab avalanches is likely to result in severe consequences. At the lower elevations shallow pockets of wind slab could be human triggered on isolated terrain features. The general avalanche hazard is expected to be moderate above an elevation of 7,500 feet and low below that elevation.
