Turnagain Pass Avalanche Forecast

Another day of above freezing temperatures will keep the likelihood for wet loose avalanches on the high end of the scale.  Terrain above 40 degrees at all elevations holds the potential for humans to easily trigger slow moving wet sluffs.  On their own, these avalanches will not have quite enough volume to bury a person.  That all changes if you are carried through trees, over cliff bands or into gullies & depressions.  Be aware of and learn how to recognize terrain traps.  Traveling in big terrain where multiple paths converge is another area where the volume of wet loose avalanches can and will increase.  Avoiding being on or in the runout of steep slopes in cirques and bowls will minimize your exposure to more dangerous (higher volume) wet loose avalanches today.

While it has been warm lately, we have not seen any wet slab activity.  A lack of water moving into deeper weak layers in the snowpack has helped to prevent these more dangerous types of avalanches from occurring.  While this has been the case, the possibility still remains for wet slab avalanches, up to 3’ in depth, to pull out in steep terrain.  Steep sunlit slopes and areas where the overall snowpack is thinner are spots to avoid today.

Snow and wind has helped to build up cornices over the past month.  Warm temps and sunshine today will warrant the need to steer clear of cornices.  It is always worth staying off of these behemoths.  Knowing where the snow connects to the underlying terrain is important in being able to effectively avoid punching through or triggering a cornice onto an underlying slope.