Nowcast- Clouds stream in from the northwest, temperatures register in the teens and low 20's, as west and southwest winds hum along in the 30's near the high peaks. Riding and turning conditions are still reeling from last weeks cow-tipping wind event and most of our big, open alpine terrain is wind jacked. However, don't let your hearts be troubled... swaths of very sheltered, low angle shady slopes offer smooth riding with a little cushion underfoot.
Forecast- Hang on to your hats, if you wear one, it's gonna be a wild ride... especially later today as a major winter storm is expected to slam into the eastern front. Look for thickening clouds with snow showers increasing in intensity later this morning. Temperatures rise into the upper 20's with west and southwest winds ramping into the 50's and 60's as the day progresses. A strong cold front crosses the area around dinnertime, the storm plugs into a stack of Marshall amps and goes fully electric, that'll of course usher in very intense snow rates.
Futurecast- Snow continues through the night, temperatures dip into the single digits, and westerly winds decrease somewhat, tapering into the 40's. Look for snow totals in the 12"-18" range for Wednesday morning with snow showers continuing through the day. A break is slated for Thursday with another storm hot on its heels to round out the workweek.
Ya gotta love the colors and you're probably grateful you switched this weeks stay at the Rock Springs timeshare... quite the meteorological Rorschach test.
Huge thanks for all the great obs streaming in from the eastern front. Even more detailed trip reports and recent obs are found
HERE.
Sunday, Joey Manship and his crew found very shallow, yet sensitive, fresh drifts along the leeward side of upper elevation ridges.
No significant avalanche activity to report, but if ya wanna geek out, click
HERE to track this years slide activity throughout the range.