Aspect:  All Aspects

Elevation: Above Tree Line

Bottom Line: Fresh and old hard wind slabs are lurking in specific areas and below prominent terrain features due to a reverse wind loading event earlier in the week. Due to recent light precipitation, it is very difficult to identify where these areas may be located. All aspects above tree line could contain pockets of these hard slabs located at ridge lines, peaks and passes. As new snow buries these areas of concern, it will become more difficult to identify suspect slopes so terrain should be evaluated carefully. Natural avalanches are unlikely and human triggered avalanches are possible in these specific areas. With new deposits this weekend falling over weak surface snow and a hard crust, conditions are primed for a future sliding surface. Be on the look out for fresh wind deposits, increasing temperatures and any significant load.  

Photo from 2/23/2022 on the Skyline Trail of Ripinski. Note the rime ice snow in the foreground and the softer, wind deposited snow just under the terrain feature on a leeward (NW) aspect.

Travel Advice:

• Avoid slopes where the new snow was loaded and created surface wind slab.
• Identify and avoid shallow areas including trigger points around rocks, cliffs, and trees.
• Look for signs of snow that has been moved around by the wind (scouring and pillows of wind slab).
• Look, listen and feel for shooting cracks, collapses and hollow sounds.
• Avoid terrain trap areas such as cliffs and gullies, and areas where it is hard to escape off to the side.

Additional Consideration:

We believe deeper persistent layers are currently dormant. However, you could still trigger a persistent slab in thin or shallow snow even if we haven’t had recent feedback or avalanche activity. With the end of February comes a higher sun angle than we have seen for the last couple months. Surface warming will begin to be prevalent on solar days, especially around exposed rocks and creating thin and/or weak spots where you could trigger these deeper layers. Remember that persistent slabs are unpredictable and that tests and observations can be unreliable. A probe can be very helpful to determine snow depth and presence of deeper buried weak layers by noting resistance as the probe moves through the snow. Continue to use wide margins of safety, collect information and be patient when it comes to more committing terrain.

Aspect:  SE-W-NW

Elevation: Above Tree Line

Bottom Line: Between 3-6 inches of new snow fell yesterday with a potential for up to 4 inches of snow today accompanied with Strong NE-E winds. Remember that wind can transport snow 10 times faster than snow falling from the sky. On slopes steeper than 35 degrees and on SE-W-NW aspects natural avalanches are possible and human triggered avalanches are likely in specific terrain. Leeward mountain features where greater amounts of snow can collect, such as below ridge lines, are areas of concern. Previous wind loaded areas from earlier in the week that occurred on all aspects will be nearly impossible to identify (See Persistent Slab Problem), and a new wind load may be enough to tip the scales. Observations are limited due to low visibility and this could create challenging route finding where you may not notice wind loaded areas until you’re on top of them.

Travel Advice:

• Avoid slopes where the new snow was loaded and created surface wind slab.
• Identify and avoid shallow areas including trigger points around rocks, cliffs, and trees.
• Look for signs of snow that has been moved around by the wind (scouring and pillows of wind slab).
• Look, listen and feel for shooting cracks, collapses and hollow sounds.
• Avoid terrain trap areas such as cliffs and gullies, and areas where it is hard to escape off to the side.