Today...Cloudy with a 50 percent chance of snow. Highs 10°F to 16°F. Lowest wind chill readings -10°F to -20°F in the morning.

Tonight...Cloudy with a 30 percent chance of snow. Lows -5°F to -15°F.

Saturday...Mostly cloudy with a 20 percent chance of snow. Highs 15°F to 21°F. Southwest winds around 15 mph in the afternoon. Lowest wind chill readings -19°F to -29°F in the morning.

Saturday Night...Mostly cloudy in the evening then becoming partly cloudy. A 20 percent chance of snow. Lows -5°F to 1°F. Southwest winds around 15 mph in the evening.

Sunday...Mostly cloudy. Slight chance of snow in the morning...then chance of snow in the afternoon. Highs 14°F to 20°F. Southwest winds around 15 mph. Chance of snow 40 percent. Lowest wind chill readings -16°F to -26°F in the morning.

Sunday Night...Breezy. Mostly cloudy with a 40 percent chance of snow. Areas of blowing snow after midnight. Lows 4°F to 10°F. Wind chill readings -11°F to -21°F.

Monday...Breezy. Not as cold. Mostly cloudy with a 20 percent chance of snow showers. Highs 23°F to 29°F. Lowest wind chill readings -12°F to -22°F in the morning.

Monday Night...Breezy. Mostly cloudy with a 20 percent chance of snow showers. Lows 7°F to 13°F.

Tuesday...Mostly cloudy in the morning then becoming partly cloudy. A 20 percent chance of snow showers. Highs 25°F to 31°F.

Tuesday Night...Partly cloudy in the evening then becoming mostly cloudy. A 20 percent chance of snow showers. Lows 9°F to 15°F.

Wednesday...Breezy. Partly cloudy with a 20 percent chance of snow showers. Highs 29°F to 35°F.

Wednesday Night...Breezy. Mostly cloudy with a 40 percent chance of snow showers. Lows 15°F to 21°F.

Thursday...Mostly cloudy with a 40 percent chance of snow showers. Highs 27°F to 33°F.

 Hazardous Weather  Gibbon Falls Forecast  Mammoth Forecast  Midway Forecast  Norris Forecast  Old Faithful Forecast 

Mountain Weather

Since yesterday only 1-2 inches of snow fell in the mountains near Cooke City and West Yellowstone while all other areas were dry. Winds this morning were blowing 10-20 mph from the West-SouthWest and mountain temperatures were in the negative single digits Fahrenheit. In most places valley temperatures were about 10 degrees colder. Winds will be relatively calm today blowing westerly at 10-15 mph, and high temperatures will struggle to approach +10°F. Only a trace to 1 inch of snow will fall near Cooke City and West Yellowstone while more significant snowfall rolls through Wyoming and Utah. Saturday looks like it will be a relatively nice day in the mountains with light winds, some sunshine and high temperatures near 20°F.

Snowpack and Avalanche Discussion:

The Bridger, Madison and Gallatin Ranges, the Lionhead area near West Yellowstone, the mountains around Cooke City and the Washburn Range:

Avalanche conditions in the backcountry are pretty quiet at the moment. Is this because conditions are somewhat stable or is this because few people were out yesterday? Perhaps it is a little of both. Significant snow fell last weekend and early this week with moderate westerly winds. Since last Friday snowfall totals from SNOTEL sites are:

• Southern mountains: 1.6 to 3.2 inches of water (about 2 to 3.5 feet of snow)

• Northern mountains: 1 to 1.1 inches of water (about 1 to 1.5 feet of snow)

Receiving this much snow overnight is typically bad for stability. Receiving this much snow over 7 days is much better for overall stability, and avalanche activity was confined to the new snow. No avalanches breaking on deeper layers in the snowpack were reported. Winds have calmed and shouldn't increase much until later this weekend. Yesterday the Moonlight Basin Ski Patrol reported fairly stiff layers of new snow that were "locked up".

The snowpack in most places is strong and deep (total depths of 5 to 8 feet) with few concerns aside from wind slabs that are becoming harder to trigger. A layer of facets that formed in early February exist about 2 to 3 feet deep in the North Gallatin Range and on isolated slopes near Lionhead. Fortunately this layer has show significant strengthening. It deserves some consideration as it may be a problem on very isolated slopes like one Doug found on Lionhead. Before riding committing lines, dig 2 to 3 feet deep on a representative slope and assess this layer if it is present. Otherwise, assess bonding within the new snow using a combination of slope cuts, hand pits, and quick stability tests.

For today on slopes steeper than 35 degrees the Avalanche Danger is rated MODERATE which means small human triggered avalanches are possible in specific areas (i.e. near ridges and under cornices) and large ones are possible in isolated areas. Less steep slopes have a LOW Avalanche Danger and generally safe avalanche conditions.

New Snowpits Page

In response to our survey we added a new page to the website with images of our snowpit profiles. This page is under the Resources/Other Info tab at http://fsavalanche.org/Encyclopedia/snowpit.htm

Truman Avalanche Report:

The report on the avalanche fatality from February 14th in Truman's Gulch on the west side of the Bridger Range is posted online. You can read it here: http://www.mtavalanche.com/accident/11/02/18.

Information provided by Doug Chabot, Mark Staples, and Eric Knoff from the Gallatin National Forest Avalanche Center. For Photos and Videos, please visit the Avalanche Centers Website!

If you have any snowpack or avalanche observations, drop them a line at mtavalanche@gmail.com or call: 406-587-6984.

For detailed Avalanche Terms utilized here, please see the Avalanche Glossary.

West Yellowstone: Beacon Park Operational

Skiing or riding near West Yellowstone? Test your beacon skills at a beacon park near the old airport where you can search for pre-placed beacons switched on/off by a control panel. Look for it by orange snow fence and signage just south of the snow cross track.

Backcountry Skier Survey – Researchers at Alaska Pacific University are studying decision making in backcountry skiers and would like to get information from you. If interested in this 10-15 minute survey, go to this website: https://www.surveymonkey.com/s/SE_AK_Backcountry_Skiing_Research.

Upcoming Events

3rd Annual Montana Ale Works Fundraiser

When & Where: March 1, Tuesday at 6:00 p.m. in the Railcar.

Cost: $20 to benefit the Friends of the Avalanche Center

Details: Chef Roth at Montana Ale Works is creating tapas style servings that will be paired with select beer from Lone Peak Brewery. More information HERE.

Pinhead Classic

The 30th Annual Pinhead Classic on is Saturday, March 5th. "Gangsters and Flappers" is this year's costume theme, so come dressed up to race, socialize and wind great prizes. Registration is $30 but get you all sorts of cool stuff. All proceeds benefit the Friends of the Avalanche Center. Check out the website http://pinheadclassic.com for details.