Although the region is forecast to see some snow tonight, this morning is the 17th day of the January drought. During this dry spell, winds have been generally northwesterly and impacting ridgelines and peaks north of Girdwood, through Turnagain Arm and Portage Valley and south of Johnson Pass. The heart of Turnagain Pass has been spared much of the wind. With that said, it’s possible that in the last week, wind slabs have formed over weak snow. With the variable wind directions in the region, it’s difficult to predict the aspect these wind slabs may be found, so remain aware. As always good travel habits are good to keep.
Looking ahead for tomorrow, the new snow will be falling onto a variety of surfaces. This includes, harder wind-packed snow and wind crusts at higher exposed elevations, but predominantly it will fall on very weak sugary snow at all elevations. Bonding with the old snow surface is expected to be poor. Slopes seeing up to a foot of new snow with some wind loading will be prime to avalanche. Stay tuned and be sure to check tomorrow’s forecast!
View toward Kiskstep Mountain from Sunburst ridge near Taylor Pass. Zoom in for signs of wind effected surface. 1.18.2020 Photo: Heather Thamm
Wind slabs on weak snow: If you’re considering steeper and higher elevation terrain, remain aware of wind affected snow forming slab character. In wind effected areas, look for pockets of pillowed snow, and remain aware of hollow feeling snow. If you experience red flags such as whumpfing (collapsing of the snowpack), or shooting cracks, it’s prudent to adjust your route. Even a small wind slab can have high consequences if it knocks a person off their feet and down a rocky slope or over a cliff.
Loose snow sluffs: The surface snow is so loose and faceted it’s very easy to initiate a sluff in steep terrain. They can be heavy and gain more volume than one might expect. If heading to steep chutes or slopes, sluffing should not be underestimated. Right now, this type of avalanche is predictable in steep terrain, making it easier to avoid by either sticking to lower angle slopes (less than 35 degrees), or by consistently skiing off fall line to avoid entrapment. This short paper is worth a read if you’re interested in the topic.
With recent surface conditions, a rider may easily trigger loose surface facets in steep terrain. These sluff avalanches may quickly gain both volume and momentum. 1.18.20 Photo:Eric Roberts
Glide cracks: Glide cracks continue to widen throughout the region. They’re unpredictable so it’s recommended to limit exposure under them as they can release at any time.
Cornices: We’ve had no reports of recent cornice failure, but they’re large and overhanging. It’s good travel practice to give cornices as much space as is reasonable.
Archives 
The Bottom Line
