23-24

<p><span><span><span><span><span><span>By mid-morning, on sunny slopes, any surface crusts that formed overnight will be breaking down and wet avalanche danger will be rising. Mostly we’re expecting relatively small wet loose slides (</span></span></span></span></span></span><a href="https://www.mtavalanche.com/images/24/wet-loose-avalanches-argentina-bo…;), but the whole array of wet snow avalanche concerns are possible today, including wet loose slides entraining the whole season’s snowpack, wet slabs (</span></span></span></span></span></span><a href="https://www.mtavalanche.com/images/24/fin-cooke-city"><span><span><span…;), or cornice collapses (</span></span></span></span></span></span><a href="https://www.mtavalanche.com/images/24/cornice-collapse-sphinx"><span><s…;).</span></span></span></span></span></span></p>

<p><span><span><span><span><span><span>Clouds may move in this afternoon and strong winds may delay melting in some areas, but spring weather is fickle and neither of those are guarantees of safety. Plan to get off sunny slopes early. Pay attention to the snow surface to know when dangerous conditions have developed on a particular slope. If you’re sinking past your boot tops in wet and slushy snow or you see rollerballs and small wet snow avalanches starting it’s time to move to cooler aspects or return to the trailhead before conditions deteriorate further.&nbsp;</span></span></span></span></span></span></p>

<p><span><span><span><span><span><span>Triggering avalanches in dry snow is becoming less likely, but is still possible, particularly on wind-loaded, high elevation, shady slopes. On Wednesday, skiers in the northern Gallatin Range triggered some wind-loaded pockets breaking 6-8” deep (</span></span></span></span></span></span><a href="https://www.mtavalanche.com/node/31812"><span><span><span><strong><span…;). Watch for shooting cracks as a clear sign that a wind drift hasn’t yet bonded. Before committing to steep slopes take a few minutes to stop, dig and test the upper couple feet of the snowpack to keep from getting surprised. Avalanches breaking deeper are much less likely, but it’s still good to keep the possibility in the back of your mind.</span></span></span></span></span></span></p>

<p><span><span><span><span><span><span>The avalanche danger is MODERATE this morning and will quickly rise to CONSIDERABLE as the day heats up.</span></span></span></span></span></span></p>