Today...Cloudy. Chance of snow in the morning...then snow likely in the afternoon. Snow accumulation of 1 to 2 inches. Total snow accumulation 2 to 6 inches. Chance of snow 60 percent. Highs 20°F to 26°F.

Tonight...Mostly cloudy. Chance of snow in the evening...then slight chance of snow after midnight. West winds around 15 mph. Chance of snow 30 percent. Lows -4°F to 4°F.

Monday - Washingtons Birthday...Breezy. Cloudy with a 50 percent chance of snow. Southwest winds 15 to 25 mph. Highs 20°F to 26°F. Lowest wind chill readings -14°F to -24°F in the morning.

Monday Night...Breezy. Snow likely. Snow accumulation of 1 to 2 inches. Southwest winds 15 to 20 mph. Chance of snow 70 percent. Lows 8°F to 14°F.

Tuesday...Breezy. Snow likely. Snow accumulation of 2 to 3 inches. Southwest winds 15 to 20 mph. Chance of snow 70 percent. Highs 25°F to 31°F.

Tuesday Night...Cloudy. Snow likely in the evening...then chance of snow after midnight. Light snow accumulations. Chance of snow 60 percent. Lows 16°F to 22°F.

Wednesday...Breezy. Snow likely in the morning...then chance of snow in the afternoon. Light snow accumulations. Chance of snow 60 percent. Highs 29°F to 35°F.

Wednesday Night...Breezy. Snow likely in the evening...then chance of snow after midnight. Moderate snow accumulations. Chance of snow 60 percent. Lows 10°F to 16°F.

Thursday...Colder. Cloudy with a 50 percent chance of snow. Highs 16°F to 22°F.

Thursday Night...Colder. Mostly cloudy in the evening then becoming partly cloudy. A 20 percent chance of snow. Lows 1°F to 7°F.

Friday...Mostly cloudy with a 20 percent chance of snow. Highs 23°F to 29°F.

Friday Night...Mostly cloudy with a 20 percent chance of snow. Lows 6°F to 12°F.

Saturday...Mostly cloudy. Slight chance of snow in the morning... Then chance of snow in the afternoon. Chance of snow 30 percent. Highs 27°F to 33°F.

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

Mountain Weather

Over the past 24 hours 3 to 5 inches of snow has fallen over the advisory area with the exception of the Bridger Range which picked up 6 to 7 inches. Mountain temperatures are currently in the single digits Fahrenheit and winds are blowing 5-15 mph out of the West-northwest. Today, an unsettled weather pattern will continue with an additional 1 to 2 inches possible in the mountains. Temperatures will warm into the teens Fahrenheit and winds will increase to 10-20 mph out of the West-northwest. Conditions will gradually dry out by tomorrow but another storm system is scheduled to arrive on Tuesday.

Snowpack and Avalanche Discussion:

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

Without question this winter has been unusual. Long dry spells have been the dominating weather pattern, sporadically interrupted by quick and intermittent snow storms. This dryer than average winter has aided the development of multiple persistent weak layers which are now scattered throughout the snowpack.

As winter finally returns, buried faceted layers will start to become more reactive. A layer of near surface facets now buried 1 to 2 feet deep can be found on most slopes throughout our advisory area. This layer will be most sensitive on any slope that has been wind affected. Yesterday, Mark found these buried facets to be widespread in the mountains around Cooke City and triggered a slide on this layer on a north facing slope. Skiers also triggered slides on this layer in Hyalite.

Although winds have not been exceptionally strong, they have blown hard enough to affect many mid to upper elevation slopes. Yesterday, the Moonlight Basin and Big Sky ski patrols triggered numerous fresh wind slabs that broke 1 to 2 feet deep. Wind loaded slopes are today's primary avalanche concern.

However, as the snow piles up and more stress is added to the snowpack, avalanches on sheltered slopes could be triggered by a skier or rider.

Today, fresh snow sitting over a layer of facets buried 1 to 2 feet deep will make human triggered avalanches likely on all wind loaded slopes and slopes steeper than 35 degrees which have a CONSIDERABLE Avalanche Danger. Less steep, non-wind loaded slopes have a MODERATE Avalanche Danger.

The next advisory tomorrow morning at 7:30 a.m. If you have any snowpack or avalanche observations, drop us a line at mtavalanche@gmail.com or call us at: 406-587-6984.

Beacon Parks

The Friends of the Avalanche Center installed a Beacon Training Park outside West Yellowstone. It's located south of town on the main snowmobile trail. Stop by and do a quick practice before heading off into the mountains!

EDUCATION, EVENTS, PHOTOS, SNOWPITS, and VIDEOS

1. We've recently uploaded more photos and snowpits to our web site, more than what are linked in the advisory.

2. We're creating a series of "How To…" stability test videos. So far we've got clips on performing a CT and ECT. There are located under Stability Tests on the Resources page.

3. Check out all our education programs, Click Here.

Information provided by Doug Chabot, Mark Staples, and Eric Knoff from the Gallatin National Forest Avalanche Center. For Events and Education, or 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.