Turnagain Pass Avalanche Forecast RSS

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ARCHIVED FORECAST - All forecasts expire after 24 hours from the posting date/time.
Issued
Mon, March 24th, 2014 - 7:00AM
Expires
Tue, March 25th, 2014 - 7:00AM
Forecaster
John Fitzgerald
Avalanche risk The Bottom Line

The avalanche danger is LOW at all elevations.   Avalanches are unlikely today.   Exceptions to this are possible, mainly in the form of wet loose avalanches and cornice falls.   Big alpine terrain and steep slopes in the lower elevations will be the most likely places to encounter these issues.

Good travel habits remain important.   These include exposing only one person at a time on a slope, watching your partners closely and having an escape route planned in case the snow moves.

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Mon, March 24th, 2014
Alpine
Above 2,500'
Low (1)
Avalanche risk
Treeline
1,000'-2,500'
Low (1)
Avalanche risk
Below Treeline
Below 1,000'
Low (1)
Avalanche risk
Alpine
Above 2,500'		 Avalanche risk
Low (1)
Treeline
1,000'-2,500'		 Avalanche risk
Low (1)
Below Treeline
Below 1,000'		 Avalanche risk
Low (1)
Danger Scale:
No Rating (0)
Low (1)
Moderate (2)
Considerable (3)
High (4)
Extreme (5)
Avalanche Problem 1
  • Normal Caution
    Normal Caution
Normal Caution
Normal Caution means triggering an avalanche is unlikely but not impossible.
More info at Avalanche.org

The middle part of March brought a series of loading events, dropping 3-5 feet of snow in many locations.  Since that time the snowpack has settled, weak layers have adjusted to new loads, and mild weather have all contributed to stabilizing the snowpack.  Despite this, it is still remotely possible to encounter the following:

Wet Loose avalanches
Very steep sunlit terrain and steep slopes in the lower elevations hold the potential for low volume point releases.

Cornices
Give cornices a wide berth.  Stay off of them by knowing where they connect to underlying terrain.  Minimize your time below them as well.

Old Wind Slabs
Winds that kicked up 4 days ago created shallow wind slabs up to a foot deep in the higher elevations.  These slabs have been mostly unreactive with one reported exception.  

Deep Slabs
Weak layers of snow buried 2-5 feet deep exist.  The deep slab problem is in a dormant phase but is worth remembering for now.  It would take a very large trigger (large group of snowmachines or people) to wake up these layers.  Thin spots of the snowpack in very steep terrain would be the most likely place for an outlier event like this to occur.

Keep in mind that LOW danger does not mean NO danger.  Continuing to utilize good travel habits will afford the ability to minimize exposure to these exceptions to the current snowpack norms.

Weather
Mon, March 24th, 2014

It has now been 10 days since any significant precipitation has fallen.   Temperatures over the past 24 hours at the Sunburst station (3,812′) have averaged 26 degrees F.   Winds there have been very light, averaging 5 mph out of the East with a max gust of 12 mph.

Today will be much like yesterday; sunny and mild with calm winds.   Temperatures at 1,000′ will climb into the high 30s F.   Winds will be out of the East at 5-10mph.

A very large ridge of high pressure is dominating the weather across most of Alaska.   This ridge is preventing any and all moisture from pushing into the region.   This pattern is now well established and looks to remain that way through most of the week.

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Riding Areas
Updated Thu, April 01st, 2021

Status of riding areas across the Chugach NF is managed by the Glacier and Seward Ranger Districts, not avalanche center staff. Riding area information is posted as a public service to our users and updated based on snow depth and snow density to prevent resource damage at trailhead locations. Riding area questions contact: mailroom_r10_chugach@fs.fed.us

Area Status Weather & Riding Conditions
Glacier District
Johnson Pass
Open
No parking in turnaround at end of the road near the outhouse.
Placer River
Open
Please do not ride along Railroad tracks. Cross tracks at 90 degree angle and clear the right of way.
Skookum Drainage
Closed
The Skookum Valley is closed to snowmachines. This closure occurs annually on April 1 as per the CNF Forest Plan.
Turnagain Pass
Open
Twentymile
Open
Please do not ride along Railroad tracks. Cross tracks at 90 degree angle and clear the right of way.
Seward District
Carter Lake
Open
Lost Lake Trail
Open
Primrose Trail
Open
Resurrection Pass Trail
Closed
Closed for the 2020/21 winter season.
Snug Harbor
Open
South Fork Snow River Corridor
Open
Summit Lake
Open

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This is a general backcountry avalanche advisory issued for Turnagain Arm with Turnagain Pass as the core advisory area. This advisory does not apply to highways, railroads or operating ski areas.

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