Turnagain Pass Archives

Date	Rating	Problem #1	Problem #2	The Bottom Line
Wed, April 13th, 2016		Glide Avalanches	Wet Loose	Below 2500′ the avalanche danger is  CONSIDERABLE  today due to a continued pattern of warm temperatures and an active glide avalanche cycle. Natural wet loose avalanches in steep terrain are possible and human triggered wet loose avalanches are likely.  Avoid being under the runout of glide cracks and travel on or under cornices. In the [Read More]
Tue, April 12th, 2016		Glide Avalanches	Wet Loose	A  CONSIDERABLE  avalanche danger remains on all slopes under 2,500′ in elevation due to an active glide avalanche cycle. Destructive glide avalanches are occurring daily across the region.  Avoid being under the runout of glide cracks.  In addition to glide avalanches, human triggered wet loose avalanches are possible in steep terrain that harbor wet and [Read More]
Mon, April 11th, 2016		Announcement	Wet Loose	Below 2500′ the avalanche danger is  CONSIDERABLE  today due to a continued pattern of warm temperatures, rain and an active glide avalanche cycle. Natural wet loose avalanches in steep terrain are possible and human triggered wet loose avalanches are likely.  Avoid being under the runout of glide cracks. In the Alpine the avalanche danger is [Read More]
Sun, April 10th, 2016		Glide Avalanches	Wet Loose	There is a CONSIDERABLE avalanche danger in the backcountry for glide avalanches, wet snow avalanches and storm snow avalanches. Glide cracks continue to release on all aspects under 3,000′. Travel under glide cracks is NOT recommended. At elevations below 2,500′, human triggered wet snow avalanches are likely where rain is saturating the snowpack. And last, [Read More]
Sat, April 9th, 2016		Wet Loose	Glide Avalanches	The avalanche danger is  CONSIDERABLE  in Turnagain Pass due to rain, blowing snow and glide avalanches. Below 2500′ large destructive glide avalanches and human triggered wet loose avalanches are possible today. In the Alpine fresh wind slabs, 1′-2′ thick are possible where the snow is drier and winds are strong. Cautious route-finding and snowpack evaluation [Read More]
Fri, April 8th, 2016		Glide Avalanches	Wet Loose	There is a generally LOW avalanche danger throughout Turnagain Pass for our typical avalanche problems.  The one exception continues to be glide avalanches in the mid-elevation and is why the danger is CONSIDERABLE between 1,000′ and 2,500′ in elevation.   Cautious route finding and terrain evaluation are essential to  avoid being under the runout of [Read More]
Thu, April 7th, 2016		Glide Avalanches	Wet Loose	The avalanche danger is  CONSIDERABLE  below 3000′ due to the potential of large destructive glide avalanches. There are several areas where glide cracks threaten poplar terrain and travel in these zones is discouraged. Cautious route-finding and terrain evaluation are essential to avoid being under the runout of glide cracks. In the Alpine the avalanche danger [Read More]
Wed, April 6th, 2016		Glide Avalanches	Normal Caution	The potential for mid-elevation glide avalanches is keeping the avalanche danger at  CONSIDERABLE today. These are most pronounced at 3,000′ and below. Many popular slopes are harboring dark brown glide cracks that have potential to release day or night.   Cautious route finding and careful terrain evaluation is essential to  avoid being under the run [Read More]
Tue, April 5th, 2016		Glide Avalanches	Normal Caution	The avalanche danger is CONSIDERABLE  in the Turnagain pass and surrounding areas due to large destructive glide avalanches. These are most pronounced at 3,000′ and below. Many popular slopes have dark brown glide cracks that could release at anytime and travel under these is discouraged. Cautious route-finding and careful terrain evaluation are essential to  avoid [Read More]
Mon, April 4th, 2016		Glide Avalanches	Normal Caution	The avalanche danger is  CONSIDERABLE  in the Turnagain pass and surrounding areas due to large destructive glide avalanches. These are most pronounced at 3,000′ and below. Many popular slopes have dark brown glide cracks that could release at anytime and travel under these is discouraged. Cautious route-finding and careful terrain evaluation are essential to  avoid [Read More]
Sun, April 3rd, 2016		Glide Avalanches	Wet Loose	The avalanche danger is  CONSIDERABLE  below 3000′ due to an increase in frequency of large destructive glide avalanches. There are several areas where glide cracks threaten popular terrain and travel in these zones is discouraged. Today warm temperatures and sun will increase the likelihood for human triggered wet avalanches below 2500′ adding to the danger [Read More]
Sat, April 2nd, 2016		Glide Avalanches	Wet Loose	Due to continued glide avalanche activity there remains a MODERATE avalanche danger at the mid-elevations. Destructive glide avalanches continue to occur sporadically in the forecast region. Glide avalanches are not triggered by people but release spontaneously. Otherwise, the snowpack is generally stable and human triggered avalanches are unlikely. If the surface crusts warm enough to [Read More]
Fri, April 1st, 2016		Wet Loose	Glide Avalanches	The avalanche danger is MODERATE  today due to above freezing temperatures, rain and an active glide avalanche cycle. Human triggered wet loose avalanches are possible in steep mid-elevation terrain (1000′-2500′). Triggering a fresh wind slab or cornice fall is possible in the Alpine.  Avoid being under the runout of glide cracks. Summer use trails with [Read More]
Thu, March 31st, 2016		Wet Loose	Glide Avalanches	The avalanche danger is  CONSIDERABLE  today due to above freezing overnight temperatures, and increased warming from the sun today. Glide avalanches and natural wet loose avalanches in steep terrain are possible today. Human triggered wet loose avalanches are likely. Cautious route-finding and terrain evaluation are essential today. Avoid being under the runout of glide cracks. [Read More]
Wed, March 30th, 2016		Wet Loose	Glide Avalanches	The avalanche danger is  CONSIDERABLE  today due to continued warm temperatures (above freezing), rain, recent snow and an active glide avalanche cyle. Natural wet loose avalanches in steep terrain are possible and human triggered wet loose avalanches are likely. Cornices fall and isolated wind slabs may also be triggered. Cautious route-finding and terrain evaluation are [Read More]
Tue, March 29th, 2016		Storm Slabs	Glide Avalanches	A CONSIDERABLE avalanche danger exists today above 1,000′ where storm snow avalanches 10-20 € deep may be easy to trigger by a skier or snowmachiner.   With an increase in elevation, the avalanche problem will transition from a wet snow issue to a wind slab problem in the alpine.   Yesterday’s new snow fell on [Read More]
Mon, March 28th, 2016		Wet Loose	Glide Avalanches	Rain, snow and wind over the forecast region will push the avalanche hazard to CONSIDERABLE today. Wet avalanches and glide avalanches may release naturally at the mid-elevations (between 1,000′ and 2,500′). These can be large and destructive slides releasing at, or near, the ground. In the Alpine, wind slab avalanches 6-18″ thick, that are composed [Read More]
Sun, March 27th, 2016		Glide Avalanches	Normal Caution	The avalanche danger is MODERATE below 3000′ in Turnagain Pass where glide cracks continue to avalanche without warming. Identify areas with existing glide cracks and avoid being under or near their run-out. In the Alpine the avalanche danger is LOW, where triggering an avalanche today is unlikely, but taking a fall in steep terrain will [Read More]
Sat, March 26th, 2016		Glide Avalanches	Wind Slabs	A  CONSIDERABLE avalanche danger remains at the mid-elevations on all aspects for glide avalanches in the Turnagain Pass, Girdwood Valley, Summit Lake and surrounding mountains. Glide cracks continue to release and produce large and destructive slides. Avoiding time under glide cracks is recommended. At the upper elevations (above 3,000′) there is a MODERATE avalanche danger [Read More]
Fri, March 25th, 2016		Glide Avalanches	Wet Loose	The avalanche danger is  CONSIDERABLE  at Treeline (below 2500′) where glide avalanche activity has been especially active in the last three days. Natural wet loose avalanches in steep terrain are also possible in the mid elevation zone and human triggered wet loose avalanches are likely. Cautious route-finding and terrain evaluation are essential today. Avoid being [Read More]
Thu, March 24th, 2016		Glide Avalanches	Wet Loose	The avalanche danger is CONSIDERABLE  at Treeline (below 2500′) in Turnagain Pass where glide avalanche activity has been especially active in the last two days. Due to a wet and saturated snowpack human triggered wet loose avalanches in steep terrain (greater than 35 degrees) are also possible in the mid elevation zone and will be [Read More]
Wed, March 23rd, 2016		Wet Loose	Glide Avalanches	The avalanche danger is CONSIDERABLE  above 1,000′ today.  Human triggered wet loose and wet slab avalanches in steep terrain (greater than 35 degrees) will be likely and large enough to be dangerous as the moist surface snow extends up to ridgetops in many locations around Turnagain Pass. Natural wet avalanches will be possible.  Cautious terrain [Read More]
Tue, March 22nd, 2016		Wet Loose	Glide Avalanches	The avalanche danger is MODERATE above 1,000′ today.   Wet loose avalanches in steep terrain (greater than 35 degrees) will be possible to trigger and are producing enough mass to be problematic as the moist surface extends up to ridgetops in many locations around Turnagain Pass.   Cautious terrain evaluation is essential today in order [Read More]
Mon, March 21st, 2016		Storm Slabs	Wet Loose	A CONSIDERABLE avalanche danger exists on all aspects at elevations above 1,000′. Human triggered avalanches are likely and natural avalanches are possible. A variety of avalanche problems will be seen today: storm slabs 8-14″ thick, wind slabs 1-2′ thick, loose snow avalanches and glide avalanches. If you are headed into the Turnagain Pass or surrounding [Read More]
Sun, March 20th, 2016		Storm Slabs	Glide Avalanches	The avalanche danger will be CONSIDERABLE today at all elevations and aspects above 1,000′ due to new snow and wind. Slab avalanches 8-12+” thick are likely to be triggered on slopes steeper than 30 degrees. These may also occur naturally along with cornice falls. Glide avalanches remain a concern as well and cracks will be [Read More]