The days of persistent northerly winds have done the most damage in the high alpine terrain. Slopes are wind stripped and wind loaded, and drifts can be found on almost any aspect - to the lee of ridge lines and cross-loaded into couloirs, gullies and mid slope break overs. The hard slabs of wind drifted snow may be stubborn, and the key is to identify and avoid any of the rounded, smooth or scalloped drifts on steep slopes, especially in unforgiving terrain, such as above cliffs and trees.

It is not a simple snowpack, and there is lots of variation. The almost daily deep, upper elevation, explosive triggered slides mean there remains a low-probability of triggering a high-consequence avalanche breaking 2 to 5 feet deep on a sugary faceted weak layer. The most likely spot would be on an upper elevation, northwest through southeasterly facing slope, that is wind loaded over a rocky area with a shallower snowpack. Unsupported slopes above cliffs, steep rollovers, or very steep slopes are also more suspect. You may trigger one of these hard slabs when entering on the edges, where the snowpack is thinner.

Another avalanche spotted to the south, from Payson Canyon, that ran during the big storms. Darce Trotter photo.