This large avalanche on the SE face of Mt Abundance, north of Cooke City, released naturally in the last 48 hours. In the photo you can see the fingers of windblown snow from strong westerly wind. Photo: S. Strenge
The main gully on Town Hill went naturally last night (2/9) with a 3-4' crown.
The main gully on town hill went naturally last night (2/9) with a 3-4' crown. Photo: B. Zavora
<p>We are a day and a half removed from a six-day storm that dropped 3-4’+ of new snow equal to 2.7-3.9” of <a href="https://www.nrcs.usda.gov/wps/portal/nrcs/detail/or/snow/?cid=nrcs142p2… water equivalent</a>-SWE across the Bridger, Madison, and Gallatin Ranges. 10-20 mph winds (30 mph in the Taylor Fork) are building thick slabs of drifted snow that will crack and avalanche under the weight of a skier or rider and are adding stress to a snowpack with multiple persistent weak layers. Doug, Ian, and I were spread across the Northern Madison Range yesterday and saw many recent avalanches. They failed on all aspects and elevations, some were big, some were small, but all would have been dangerous to a skier or rider (<a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MowctT2PVAE&list=PLXu5151nmAvQDzKmH… Ridge video</strong></a><strong>, </strong><a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hzbJUCzNeiY&list=PLXu5151nmAvQDzKmH… Creek video</strong></a><strong>, </strong><a href="https://mtavalanche.com/node/24180"><strong>large avalanche details</strong></a><strong>, </strong><a href="https://mtavalanche.com/node/24178"><strong>small avalanche details</strong></a>). The story is the same in the Gallatin Range (<a href="https://mtavalanche.com/images/21/alex-lowe-n-aspect"><strong>photo</st…;) and the Bridger Range (<a href="https://mtavalanche.com/images/21/natural-avalanche-bridger-peak"><stro… Peak photo</strong></a><strong>, </strong><a href="https://mtavalanche.com/images/21/natural-avalanche-east-baldy-pk"><str… Photo</strong></a>). Obtain details about dozens of avalanches occurring in the last five days on the <a href="https://mtavalanche.com/avalanche-activity"><strong>Avalanche Activity Page</strong></a> of our website.</p>
<p>Today, human-triggered avalanches breaking 1-2’ deep are likely on slopes with thick drifts of recently wind-loaded snow, it is possible they will fail deeper on buried weak layers. Avalanches breaking on buried weak layers remain possible on all steep slopes. Careful route finding will minimize exposure to consequences of slides as we wait for the snowpack to adjust. The danger is CONSIDERABLE on wind-loaded slopes and MODERATE on all others.</p>
<p>Wind in the mountains around Cooke City is moving the 3-4’ of soft snow from the recent storm over ridges and across slopes creating slabs of snow where human-triggered avalanches are likely. Earlier in the week, a group of skiers near Sheep Creek triggered one of these slopes from a long distance away and watched as it ran down to the drainage (<a href="https://mtavalanche.com/node/24155"><strong>photo and details</strong></a>). Last Friday, a skier was caught and partially buried in a slide above Hayden Creek (<a href="https://www.mtavalanche.com/node/24075"><strong>photo and details</strong></a>). Look at our <a href="https://mtavalanche.com/photos"><strong>photos page</strong></a> for many images of slides around Cooke City. Avoid steep wind-loaded slopes and carefully assess the snowpack and consequences of a slide before entering non-wind-loaded avalanche terrain. The danger is rated CONSIDERABLE on wind-loaded slopes and MODERATE on all others.</p>
<p>Human-triggered avalanches are possible in the mountains around West Yellowstone where 2 feet of snow fell last week. Multiple persistent weak layers buried under a growing slab of snow take time to fully adjust (<a href="https://youtu.be/CI0HFvtLrf4"><strong>Lionhead video</strong></a>). This weekend, a rider escaped being caught by an avalanche near Targhee Creek (<a href="https://www.mtavalanche.com/node/24111"><strong>photo</strong></a>). Evaluate the consequences of being caught in a slide and look for signs of instability before entering steep terrain. Be cautious especially on and under terrain with new slabs of wind-drifted snow. With no recent snowfall, the likelihood of triggering an avalanche is going down. The danger is rated MODERATE.</p>
<p>If you get out, please send us your observations no matter how brief. You can submit them via our <a href="https://www.mtavalanche.com/node/add/snow_observation"><strong>website<…;, email (<a href="mailto:mtavalanche@gmail.com"><strong>mtavalanche@gmail.com</strong></a…;), phone (406-587-6984), or Instagram (#gnfacobs).</p>
Since last Sunday there were 16 avalanche fatalities in the U.S. The most in one week in the U.S. since 1910 (NYT article). On Saturday in Utah, 8 skiers were caught and 4 were killed. Three events in the last week involved multiple burials and deaths. Our deepest condolences go out to the family and friends of those involved in all the recent events.
8,023ft elevation, SW aspect, 19° incline
STM ^25cm
CT13
ECTP12 (@ same 25cm point)
1.3° C temperature change per 10cm
total pit height = 75cm
A Big Sky resident spotted 5 natural avalanches on Yellow Mountain that failed during the tail end of the storm.
A Big Sky resident spotted 5 natural avalanches from the comfort of his living room. Photo: N. Davies
A Big Sky resident spotted 5 natural avalanches from the comfort of his living room. Photo: N. Davies
