Forecast for the Skyline Area Mountains

Nikki Champion
Issued by Nikki Champion for
Saturday, March 4, 2023
The avalanche danger is MODERATE across steep upper elevation terrain facing west through north through southeast where you may find shallow slabs of wind-drifted snow. Be on the lookout for pockets of reactive wind-drifted snow, especially in consequential terrain where even a small avalanche can have a detrimental outcome.
Out of the wind zone, the avalanche danger is LOW.
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Weather and Snow
Current Conditions: Riding conditions remain quite enjoyable. The snow surface seems to have stayed generally cold and spared from any sun or warmer temperatures. Yesterday, we received a nice dusting of 1-3" inches of new snow throughout the day. The winds have been generally light from the west-southwest, increasing last night with some stronger gusts along the high ridges. Temperatures have dropped into the low teens and single digits over the last 24 hours.

Mountain Weather: We'll have cloudy skies today with light snowfall beginning this afternoon. No real accumulation by the end of the day. Temperatures should remain in the mid to low teens. Ridgetop wind gusts might increase a bit, with gusts up to 30 mph, but overall we should have generally light wind speeds from the southwest. We should see periods of snow through the weekend. Overnight snow totals could bring 1-3" of new snow to the area, with snowfall increasing into Sunday. By Monday, all these pulses could add up to a foot of snow.
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Avalanche Problem #1
Wind Drifted Snow
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Description
The upper layers of the snowpack should be adjusting and stabilizing. It will be harder to crack out an avalanche today. Don't let your guard down though. With a small bump in winds last night and soft snow available for transport, shallow slabs of wind-drifted snow along ridgelines and subridges will be the primary concern today. Continue to hit test slopes to see if you can initiate any cracking. Avoid very steep slopes where the wind has signs of drifted and deposited snow.
For the most part, you can travel around without much concern about triggering an avalanche today. Remember that if you're looking for trouble, you can probably find it on the steepest most radical terrain.
General Announcements
This forecast is from the U.S.D.A. Forest Service, which is solely responsible for its content. This forecast describes general avalanche conditions and local variations always occur.