Bunny Flat to Old Ski Bowl

Today, forecasters took full advantage of the clear weather to go look for avalanches and observe as much terrain as possible. Peering into Avalanche Gulch from 9,500 feet, clear evidence of a large recent natural avalanche could be seen. Avalanche Gulch proper, held large debris chunks, with scoured sidewalls, and a large amount of snow pilled in the gully. Looking down the runout, a few fingers of snow could be seen fanned out in the treeline. No crown was observed. We approximate this avalanche to have started below the AK chutes and along the west-northwest aspect of Green Butte Ridge. 

Near and below treeline offered the best conditions with no wind effect in sheltered areas, and knee-deep boot penetration. Wind textured snow exists in the alpine, but remains soft. No red flags of avalanche danger were observed, and the snowpack seems to be setting up nicely. 

Several other natural storm slab avalanches were observed, all being over two days old, and likely slid on February 6th or 7th. 

These locations include:  

• Everrit Memorial road cut
• Sun Bowl
• East face of Green Butte. 

Temperatures stayed below freezing, the sky was crystal clear, and the wind was dead calm.

The snowpack is settling fast and warming from sun exposure. In sheltered areas, it's still cold and dry. A surface crust will likely form in the coming days. At all elevations, a right-side-up snowpack structure was observed, making for supportable riding conditions. 

As clear and sunny weather prevails, wet-loose avalanche activity could be on the rise, especially in areas near and below treeline receiving large amounts of solar input.