18-19

<p>It has snowed somewhere in our forecast area 13 out if the last 14 days (<strong><a href="https://www.mtavalanche.com/weather/wx-avalanche-log">weather log</a></strong>). The mountains around Bozeman and Cooke City have 3-4’ of snow on the ground with 2-4’ measured around Big Sky and West Yellowstone. The snowpack has a good structure: it is dense near the ground and supports our weight and lacks widespread weak layers. This is a positively refreshing start to the season!</p>

<p>Wind-loading is our #1 avalanche concern. On Friday and again on Sunday, ice climbers triggered small avalanches on a wind-loaded slopes up Hyalite (<strong><a href="https://www.mtavalanche.com/avalanche-incidents">details</a></strong&gt;, <strong><a href="https://www.mtavalanche.com/images/18/ice-climber-triggered-slab">photo…;, <strong><a href="https://www.mtavalanche.com/images/18/small-wind-slab-triggered-flander…;) and on Saturday a snowboarder released a wind-slab in Middle Basin north of Big Sky (<strong><a href="https://www.mtavalanche.com/images/18/middle-basin-avalanche">photo</a>…;, <strong><a href="https://www.mtavalanche.com/node/19028">details</a></strong&gt;). Westerly winds are forecasted to pick up today and remain strong until mid-week, blowing powder into wind-drifts that could be easily triggered. A common warning sign on wind-loaded slopes are cracks shooting out in front of your skis.</p>

<p>It is early season and we are still formulating an overall picture of the snowpack. Our <strong><a href="https://www.mtavalanche.com/photos">photos</a></strong&gt; page and <strong><a href="https://www.mtavalanche.com/snowpits">snowpit profiles</a></strong> detail the information we are gathering and are worth a quick study. In general we are conservative in our snowpack assessments this time of year. Last Tuesday a large avalanche was triggered by the Big Sky Ski Patrol (<strong><a href="https://www.mtavalanche.com/node/18990">details</a></strong&gt;), and skiers found weak snow (<strong><a href="https://www.mtavalanche.com/images/18/facets-below-crust">facets</a></s…;) in Hyalite and Cooke City. It’s important to dig and test the snow to rule out potential dangers. Once we get more information and more snowfall we will start issuing daily advisories and danger ratings.</p>

<p>New this season, we added hyperlinks to the <strong><a href="https://www.mtavalanche.com/weather/wx-avalanche-log">Weather and Avalanche Log</a></strong> and a new Menu item &lt;<strong><a href="https://www.mtavalanche.com/avalanche-activity">Avalanches and SnowPits</a></strong>&gt; with information on avalanche activity and incidents.</p>

<p>We are preparing for winter, scheduling avalanche classes, and setting up weather stations. If you get outside send us an observation via our website, email (<a href="mailto:mtavalanche@gmail.com">mtavalanche@gmail.com</a&gt;), phone (406-587-6984), or Instagram (#gnfacobs).</p>