Bollettino valanghe

Northern New Mexico

Taos Avalanche Center
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Pericolo valanghe

Alta quota
2 · Moderato
Limite del bosco
2 · Moderato
Sotto il limite
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Non aggiornato — questo bollettino è scaduto 4 years ago. Stai vedendo condizioni passate, non il bollettino in corso.

In sintesi

At upper elevations, moderate to strong winds over the last several days have drifted snow and stiffened the surface into shallow wind slabs. Avoid slopes where you find obvious wind-drifted pillows and smooth surfaces with stiffer snow underfoot.  You can also trigger a persistent slab avalanche on faceted weak layers and depth hoar near the ground at all elevations.  These persistent weak layers are buried under cohesive slabs of varying depths and hardnesses.  Obvious signs of instability like shooting cracks and loud collapses may not be present in travels and give you a false sense of safety.  You are more likely to impact deeper buried weak layers where the overlying slab is thinner. These likely trigger points are typically found on the margins of the slabs, near trees, and rock outcrops. 

Problemi valanghivi

  • Persistent Slabs

    • Alta quota
    • Limite del bosco
    • Sotto il limite del bosco
    Probabilità
    Possible
    Dimensione
    1–2.5

    Deeper down in the snowpack is where you'll find facets and depth hoar.  These persistent weak layers formed during November and early December dry periods can be found on most slopes and are buried under 1 to 1.5 meters of snow from storms earlier in January.  In pits, these weak layers have been showing signs of strengthening and rounding as we push further away from the last loading event and have a deeper snowpack.  On most slopes, these weak layers will be difficult to trigger unless you find a "sweet spot" where the slab is thinner.  It may not be the first person on the slope to get it to release, and tracks on a slope are not an indication that it is safe. Taking the time to dig a quick pit in the terrain you plan to play on, to see if this poor snowpack structure of strong over weak is present is a great way to assess if this persistent slab problem exists.  You can also avoid this problem, by sticking to lower-angle slopes without steep slopes above.  

  • Wind Slabs

    • Alta quota
    • Limite del bosco
    • Sotto il limite del bosco
    Probabilità
    Possible
    Dimensione
    1–1.5

    Moderate to strong winds over the last several days have created wind slabs at upper elevations.  Avoid obvious wind-drifted pillows and smooth rounded surfaces that are stiffer underfoot and may feel hollow.  Watch for shooting cracks on the surface as these are indications you've found unstable snow.  These wind slabs most likely would be small but could sweep you off your feet and take you for a ride, which in exposed terrain could have serious consequences.      

Avalanche Discussion

Strong westerly winds continue to impact our mountains, with windy conditions expected through Monday.  There's not much snow available for transport, but slabs on the surface have continued to stiffen into harder slabs. While other slopes have been scoured with dirt and rocks exposed. Where wind has transported snow, these slabs will feel hard underfoot and most likely will be able to support your weight.    

The persistent slab problem that has plagued us for much of the last month is slowly trending downward as a deeper and settling snowpack has helped faceted weak layers and depth hoar near the ground strengthen.  It doesn't mean we're fully out of the woods just yet with these deeper buried persistent weak layers but we are trending in the right direction.  With that comes a lower likelihood of triggering an avalanche, but the consequences still remain quite high.  If you were to get a slope to release, it could take with it most of the season's snowpack. 

Our snowpack is finally getting deeper with 1 to 2-meter snowpack depths, which makes it harder to impact weak layers near the ground. Identifying deeper areas from areas where the overlying slab is thinner is tricky if not impossible. Without immediate feedback from the snowpack like collapses, shooting cracks and multiple tracks on a slope this can give you a false sense of security until you hit "sweet spot" and release an avalanche that could be catastrophic. If this much uncertainty is not your cup of tea, you can always stick to lower-angle wind-sheltered terrain that does not have steep slopes overhead. 

With no snow in the long-term forecast,  and cold clear nights with warm sunny days, we'll be seeing changes in the snow surface from near-surface faceting and crusts on solar aspects.  It's starting to be that time of year when a higher sun angle and our intense sun at our southerly latitude here in the states have big impacts on the snow surface.  Although not much of a concern now these layers will become more of a focus when we do get more snow.       

 

 

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