Photos

This natural avalanche was observed in the afternoon around 1500. It was not seen earlier in the day and is thought to occurred at some point after 1200. It was seen from a distance on Pioneer mountain. It occurred on an E facing slope around 9600’. Active wind transport was noted on the ridge line above the avalanche. It looked to be around a R3-D2. Photo: R. Freeman

We were snowmobiling up portal creek today near the hidden lakes trailhead and I set off a small slide remotely by riding below a small ridge. The slide was about 3 feet at its crown 30 or 40 feet wide and ran about 40 yards. It just came down to where my track had crossed underneath. Everything was fine and we stayed safe and continued on with our plan and had a nice day.

We were snowmobiling up portal creek today near the hidden lakes trailhead and I set off a small slide remotely by riding below a small ridge. The slide was about 3 feet at its crown 30 or 40 feet wide and ran about 40 yards. It just came down to where my track had crossed underneath. Everything was fine and we stayed safe and continued on with our plan and had a nice day.

We were snowmobiling up portal creek today near the hidden lakes trailhead and I set off a small slide remotely by riding below a small ridge. The slide was about 3 feet at its crown 30 or 40 feet wide and ran about 40 yards. It just came down to where my track had crossed underneath. Everything was fine and we stayed safe and continued on with our plan and had a nice day. 

**Reporting this from a friend of a friend. Not my photo, nor was I involved.**
 

one skier got caught above large bottom cliff, carried all the way down over cliff to the apron. Said skier walked away completely unharmed. Not buried. 
 

north face of that bowl, near cornrows. 

Additional info from BSSP: 

"There was a large, deep slab avalanche snowboard triggered in Lone Lake Cirque this afternoon. The
slide ripped in a secondary start zone below ridgetop, and ran far into the flats, and may have run a

bit uphill, where it encountered the rock glacier moraine in the runout. It looks to be a R4, D2.5."

From IG:

Think this was a recent natural up buck I saw today. Didn’t get close enough to see but looked like it was a big crown… down low 8900ish SE

A skier remotely triggered a 1-2' deep slab of wind-drifted snow that broke ~100' wide outside the boundaries of Big Sky Resort. Photo: Anonymous

We observed evidence of a couple of recent slab avalanches at the throne. Photo: J. Weingarten

From IG: Battle ridge today/yesterday the 27th. Noticed this and a few other smaller solar releases as well as a couple storm slabs from during the cycle. Sun crust formed rapidly and there was a lot of wind loading in the afternoon. Photo: P Norvell

From obs 3/26/23: "Saw a couple small natural slides breaking in the new snow. The one on the small slope beside the road actually appeared to have broken when a snow bike crossed the top just off the side of the road." Photo: J. Weingarten

From obs 3/26/23: "Saw a couple small natural slides breaking in the new snow.... occurred in the afternoon sometime" Photo: J. Weingarten

Checking the slope angle on the west side of Henderson Mountain outside Cooke City. Selecting terrain less than 30 degrees steep is the most reliable way to avoid avalanches. The most reliable way to know the slope angle, measure it. Photo: GNFAC

[On 3/25/23]: Skier reported, "Came across debris of a recent skier-triggered slide near the top of Little Ellis in a small, protected, eastern facing gully around 7,500'. Crown was ~3.5-1.5' deep, ~35' wide and it ran ~150'. Ski tracks were observed near the top of the crown and next to a small hole near the surface ~70' from the crown where it looks like someone self extracted. No signal was found with a beacon search and my group felt that the one track from the hole must have been from the same skier as the track near the crown." Photo: R. Beck

[On 3/25/23]: Skier reported, "Came across debris of a recent skier-triggered slide near the top of Little Ellis in a small, protected, eastern facing gully around 7,500'. Crown was ~3.5-1.5' deep, ~35' wide and it ran ~150'. Ski tracks were observed near the top of the crown and next to a small hole near the surface ~70' from the crown where it looks like someone self extracted. No signal was found with a beacon search and my group felt that the one track from the hole must have been from the same skier as the track near the crown." Photo: R. Beck

Photo: R. Lindsey

Photo: R. Lindsey

A runner reported on 3/24/23: "I observed the results of a wet slide avalanche within the first mile of Middle Cottonwood Creek Trail. The slide came down from the south side of the canyon (north facing), and crossed the trail at about 4-5' deep and 10' across at the trail with debris and into the creek at the creek crossing about .75 mile from the trailhead. The crown was only about 100' up the side of the canyon. The avalanche would've occurred earlier in the week, there was just the skiff of snow on it from the previous light snow (22nd?).... This is the 3rd wet slide I've seen in the last 3-4 weeks on Middle Cottonwood in the same region where the trail is on the south side of the creek (mile .4-.80 from summer trailhead)... I've seen wet slides in that area 3 of the last 4 years once the sun hammers that south slope in the afternoon. I would expect more at the next warm spell after this current storm cycle."

A runner reported on 3/24/23: "I observed the results of a wet slide avalanche within the first mile of Middle Cottonwood Creek Trail. The slide came down from the south side of the canyon (north facing), and crossed the trail at about 4-5' deep and 10' across at the trail with debris and into the creek at the creek crossing about .75 mile from the trailhead. The crown was only about 100' up the side of the canyon. The avalanche would've occurred earlier in the week, there was just the skiff of snow on it from the previous light snow (22nd?).... This is the 3rd wet slide I've seen in the last 3-4 weeks on Middle Cottonwood in the same region where the trail is on the south side of the creek (mile .4-.80 from summer trailhead)... I've seen wet slides in that area 3 of the last 4 years once the sun hammers that south slope in the afternoon. I would expect more at the next warm spell after this current storm cycle."

From GVSA groomer via text on 3/24/23: "Small slide in Buck just below 5 mile on the road cut. Likely natural. E Face about 42 degrees, 6-8" new up on top with 10 mph wind out of the SE. Cuttently snowing at .5"/hour (9pm)." Photo: D. Kristensen