There’s been no snowfall since Tuesday, although there’s been plenty of wind and wind-loading at all elevations (photo). Yesterday, Eric and Alex took a ski tour into the bowl below Sacajawea Peak in the Bridger Range and got blasted by the wind. Snow cover was variable: some slopes have enough snow to ski while others still have enough dirt to hike.
Strong winds were transporting snow and creating wind slabs in the Bridger Range. We found wind slabs and highly variable snow depth in the Northern Bridger Range. Photo: GNFAC
Yesterday’s storm delivered 2-5” of new snow to our forecast area, adding to a preexisting base of 12-20”. This puts the settled base depth at 1.5 to 2 feet in most areas above 8,000 feet. In the mountains around Cooke City, skiers reported finding close to three feet of settled snow in upper elevation terrain.
Located in the northern Bridger Range, this slide likely occured over the weekend. From an email: "It occurred on an east facing slope, high up and steep, ripped to the ground and slid nearly 2000'... you might be able to make out the crown way above about halfway up the rock face." Photo: M. Cohen
This slide occurred on Sunday, 11/8/15 north of Emigrant Peak. The skier who triggered the slide was caught briefly, but fortunately was able to ski off the slab. Although small in size, this avalanche would have had severe consequences due to the steep and rocky terrain. The slide occurred on a wind loaded slope with a northeast aspect. This slide is similar to the one that caught two hunters in the Bridger Range near Sacajewea last Thursday. These are good reminders not to let your guard down during early season conditions. Photo: Jon C.
This slide occurred on Sunday, 11/8/15 north of Emigrant Peak. The skier who triggered the slide was caught briefly, but fortunately was able to ski off the slab. Although small in size, this avalanche would have had severe consequences due to the steep and rocky terrain. The slide occurred on a wind loaded slope with a northeast aspect. This slide is similar to the one that caught two hunters in the Bridger Range near Sacajewea last Thursday. These are good reminders not to let your guard down during early season conditions. Photo: Jon C.
This slide occurred on Sunday, 11/8/15 north of Emigrant Peak. The skier who triggered the slide was caught briefly, but fortunately was able to ski off the slab. Although small in size, this avalanche would have had severe consequences due to the steep and rocky terrain. The slide occurred on a wind loaded slope with a northeast aspect. This slide is similar to the one that caught two hunters in the Bridger Range near Sacajewea last Thursday. These are good reminders not to let your guard down during early season conditions. Photo: Jon C.
The snowpack doesn’t care about our mode of travel: foot, skis, snowmobile, or snowshoe. As the two hunters experienced, under unstable conditions it’s possible to trigger an avalanche, even during early season. New snow and strong winds over the last five days have created drifts of snow near the ridgelines and filled up gullies. These locations harbor thicker pillows of wind slab and are our main avalanche concern. Unfortunately, these slopes are where we want to ski to avoid rocks…a double-edged sword.
At 6:50 am on Thursday, November 5, 2015, two hunters were walking near the saddle of Sacajawea Peak after approaching from the Fairy Lake Trailhead on the east side of the Bridger Range. They were on the shoulder of the peak to the north (often referred to as Hardscrabble) at 9,000 feet elevation when they triggered an avalanche that broke 40-50 feet wide and 20 feet above them. They were carried 400 vertical feet (measured by their GPS) over a series of rocks (photo).
