Turnagain Pass Archives
| Date | Rating | Problem #1 | Problem #2 | The Bottom Line |
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 Spring Conditions
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CNFAC is no longer issuing avalanche advisories for Turnagain Pass and surrounding regions. Although the forecast season has finished, the avalanche season has not – please see below for some tips on NAVIGATING THE BACKCOUNTRY IN SPRINGTIME. Current conditions? Keep tabs on our Observation Page! We will be posting any observations/reports sent in to us. “Like” the [Read More] | ||
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Spring Conditions
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The avalanche danger will start out LOW and rise to CONSIDERABLE as the snowpack heats up and wet snow avalanches become more likely. This includes wet loose, wet slab, and glide avalanches. Be aware of increasing danger as surface crusts break down and the snowpack becomes unsupportable. If you notice wet and sloppy snow on the surface, head to [Read More] | ||
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Spring Conditions
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The avalanche danger will start off LOW and rise to CONSIDERABLE at all elevations today. Wet avalanches releasing as a slab several feet deep are the biggest concern. As the sun starts to heat up the snow surface wet avalanches will become more likely. To avoid being involved with a wet avalanche it is important to monitor [Read More] | ||
 Wet Loose
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The avalanche danger will start out LOW but quickly rise to CONSIDERABLE as temperatures heat up and the chances for wet snow avalanches increase. The most likely avalanches to encounter will be wet loose avalanches, but we will also likely see continued glide and wet slab activity. All of these avalanches can be large and destructive, so it [Read More] | ||
 Wet Slab
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The avalanche danger is CONSIDERABLE at all elevations today. Wet avalanches are likely due to the warm temperatures and cloud cover over the past several days. Wet loose avalanches will be very easy to trigger and can grow quite large when running down long slopes. Wet slab avalanches are also likely today, which are highly destructive and [Read More] | ||
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Wet Loose
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The avalanche danger is CONSIDERABLE at all elevations today. With four days of above freezing temperatures and continued warm weather with light rain possible up to 2000′ by this afternoon, the chances for large wet snow avalanches are increasing. These may be natural or human-triggered. Wet loose avalanches are likely, and the chances for wet slab avalanches [Read More] | ||
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Wet Loose
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 Wind Slabs
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The avalanche danger is MODERATE at all elevations. With little or no refreeze for the past two nights and warm temperatures with partly to mostly sunny skies on the way, we are expecting to see wet loose avalanches as the snow surface heats up. Be on the lookout for natural avalanches on steep southerly slopes later in [Read More] | ||
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Wind Slabs
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Wet Loose
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The avalanche danger is CONSIDERABLE above 1000′ today. At mid and upper elevations strong winds overnight blew snow into fresh wind slabs 1′ deep or deeper. These may become larger as strong winds continue all day, releasing naturally, and will be easy for person to trigger. The avalanche danger is MODERATE below 1000′ where wet [Read More] | ||
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Wind Slabs
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Wet Loose
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The avalanche danger is MODERATE at all elevations today. At upper elevations winds started to pick up overnight and fresh wind slabs up to 1′ deep could be triggered by a person or release naturally today. At lower elevations above freezing temperatures could lead to wet loose avalanches on steep terrain. There is an outside chance a [Read More] | ||
 Persistent Slabs
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Wet Loose
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A MODERATE avalanche danger remains today. On shaded slopes at the mid and upper elevations there is the potential for a person to trigger a 1 to 2 foot slab avalanche failing on a weak layer. This issue is also on solar aspects and most concerning on these aspects in the afternoons when the surface [Read More] | ||
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Persistent Slabs
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Wet Loose
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The avalanche danger is MODERATE at all elevations today. A weak layer buried 1-2′ deep has the potential to cause large human triggered avalanches today, and could even be triggered from low angle terrain adjacent to steeper slopes. The sun is due to make an appearance this afternoon, which could quickly create conditions for wet loose avalanches [Read More] | ||
 Storm Slabs
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Wet Loose
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The avalanche danger is CONSIDERABLE above 2500′. Strong winds yesterday formed fresh wind slabs 1-2′ deep that are still possible for a person to trigger today. Larger avalanches releasing on an icy crust about 1-2′ deep are also possible and we recommend evaluating how well the new snow from this week is bonding to the old snow [Read More] | ||
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Storm Slabs
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The avalanche danger is CONSIDERABLE above 1000′. More wind and snow is on the way today, and the snow from Tuesday’s storm may still be reactive as this next loading event begins. It will be easy to trigger an avalanche up to 1 to 2 feet deep on freshly wind loaded slopes today, and larger avalanches failing [Read More] | ||
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Storm Slabs
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Wet Loose
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Avalanche danger today is directly related to how much snow fell during yesterday’s storm. A CONSIDERABLE avalanche danger exists where over a foot of new snow fell (Girdwood and Portage Valleys). Areas that saw less than a foot of new snow have a MODERATE danger (Turnagain Pass). Expect a variety of new snow avalanche issues [Read More] | ||
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Wind Slabs
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The avalanche danger will rise to CONSIDERABLE today above 1,000′ as a cold storm system moves through bringing strong easterly wind and heavy snow showers to sea level across our advisory areas. Natural wind slab avalanches will be possible and human triggered avalanches up to 1′ deep will be likely. MODERATE danger exists below treeline [Read More] | ||
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Wet Loose
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The avalanche danger will start out LOW and rise to MODERATE as snow surfaces heat up through the day. Wet loose avalanches will be the main concern, starting with steep south-facing slopes. Be on the lookout for roller balls as an earlier indicator of increasing danger, and avoid traveling on or under steep slopes as temperatures rise this afternoon. [Read More] | ||
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Wind Slabs
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Wet Loose
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The avalanche danger is MODERATE today. It is possible to trigger a wind slab avalanche around 6 to 12″ deep on upper-elevation slopes that were loaded last night. Later in the day, the chances for wet loose avalanches will increase as snow surfaces soften. Be on the lookout for increasing danger on steep southerly slopes, and move [Read More] | ||
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Wind Slabs
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Persistent Slabs
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The avalanche danger is MODERATE at all elevations. Watch for lingering wind slabs from yesterday’s northwesterly winds as well as new small wind slabs that could form later today as east winds increase. These are likely to be shallow in the 6 to 10 inch range. Triggering a larger slab composed of last week’s storm [Read More] | ||
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Wind Slabs
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Persistent Slabs
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The avalanche danger is MODERATE at all elevations today. Wind slabs 6-12″ thick are likely at upper elevations due to moderate winds from the west. Larger avalanches releasing on an icy crust buried about 1-2′ deep are also possible and have the potential to be triggered remotely. We recommend using small test slopes to check how reactive [Read More] | ||
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Wind Slabs
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Persistent Slabs
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The avalanche danger is MODERATE at all elevations. Small wind slabs could form during the day with 1-4″ of new snow expected to fall with moderate east winds. Otherwise, we are still concerned about a person triggering a larger slab that fails on a slick crust under the storm snow from last weekend. UPPER GIRDWOOD [Read More] | ||
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Storm Slabs
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The avalanche danger remains CONSIDERABLE above 1000′. There were four large human-triggered avalanches yesterday, all failing at the interface between this week’s snow and an older crust. It is likely we will be able to trigger similar avalanches today- up to 2 to 4′ deep and several hundred feet wide. Along with these bigger avalanches, it will [Read More] | ||
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Storm Slabs
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The avalanche danger remains CONSIDERABLE in the mid and upper elevations (above 1,000′) and MODERATE below this. Human triggered avalanches are expected in yesterday’s new storm snow. These could be wind slabs on wind loaded slopes, storm slabs on sheltered slopes, sluffs, and cornice falls. Slabs should range from 1 to 2 feet deep depending [Read More] | ||
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Wind Slabs
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The avalanche danger will remain CONSIDERABLE above 1000′. Another round of stormy weather is impacting the area this morning, making human-triggered avalanches 1-2′ deep or deeper likely, especially on wind-loaded slopes. Some areas may see intense snowfall today, and the most dangerous avalanche conditions will be in the places that pick up the most snow. This round [Read More] | ||
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Wind Slabs
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Wet Loose
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The avalanche danger is CONSIDERABLE above 1000′. Some parts of our advisory area received 1.5 to 2 feet of snow in the past 24 hours, with winds reaching over 100 mph. The weather is expected to be a bit calmer today, but dangerous avalanche conditions will remain. It is likely a person will be able to trigger [Read More] | ||
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Storm Slabs
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Wet Loose
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The avalanche danger is HIGH above 2500′. Strong winds and heavy snowfall will make natural and human triggered avalanches 1-2+’ deep very likely today. The potential size of avalanches will be larger in areas that receive more new snowfall, like Portage and Girdwood. We recommend avoiding avalanche terrain and the runout zones of overhead avalanche paths in [Read More] |
Below are archived forecasts for the past 5 seasons with the highest danger rating and Avalanche Problem 1 displayed in the chart. Click on a table cell to read the forecast for that day. Alternatively you can view this page for 10 seasons of data plus embedded observations from that day.