Caution advised for snow falling off of building roofs. Park accordingly.

Dangerous avalanche conditions may already exist in many back country areas, please call the Recorded Avalanche Advisory 406-587-6981 for the most current conditions. Also, see the Avalanche Advisory posted below.

Today: Cloudy. Snow likely early in the morning...then chance of snow in the late morning and afternoon. Snow accumulation of 1 to 2 inches. Chance of snow 60 percent. Highs 19°F to 25°F.

Tonight: Snow likely. Snow accumulation of 1 to 2 inches. Total snow accumulation 3 to 8 inches. Chance of snow 60 percent. Lows 8°F to 14°F.

Friday: Mostly cloudy in the morning then becoming partly cloudy. A 20 percent chance of snow. Highs 24°F to 30°F.

Friday Night: Partly cloudy in the evening then clearing. Lows 7°F to 13°F.

Saturday: Mostly sunny in the morning then becoming partly cloudy. Southwest winds around 15 mph in the afternoon. Highs 26°F to 32°F.

Saturday Night: Partly cloudy in the evening then becoming mostly cloudy. A 50 percent chance of snow. Lows 11°F to 17°F.

Sunday: Snow likely. Moderate snow accumulations. Chance of snow 70 percent. Highs 21°F to 27°F.

Sunday Night: Colder. Mostly cloudy with a 30 percent chance of snow. Lows 2°F to 8°F.

Monday / Presidents' Day: Partly cloudy with a 20 percent chance of snow. Highs 17°F to 23°F.

Monday Night / Presidents' Day Night: Partly cloudy. Lows 5°F to 11°F.

Tuesday: Partly cloudy in the morning then becoming mostly cloudy. A 20 percent chance of snow. Highs 23°F to 29°F.

Tuesday Night: Mostly cloudy with a 40 percent chance of snow. Lows 7°F to 13°F.

Wednesday: Mostly cloudy with a 40 percent chance of snow. Highs 19°F to 25°F.

 Hazardous Weather Forecast  Yellowstone & Grand Teton Forecasts  Gibbon Falls Forecast  Mammoth Forecast  Midway Forecast  Norris Forecast  Old Faithful Forecast 

Mountain Weather

Since yesterday the mountains near Cooke City received 5 inches of snow and all other places received 1 to 3 inches. This morning temperatures were in the low teens Fahrenheit, and gusty winds were blowing 15 mph from the West and Nnorthwest with gusts of 20 to 30 mph. Mostly cloudy skies today will keep temperatures in the teens Fahrenheit, and winds will continue blowing 15 to 30 mph from the West and Northwest. Snowfall tonight will bring 1 to 3 inches by tomorrow morning.

Snowpack and Avalanche Discussion:

Cooke City:

The mountains near Cooke City have also received new snow and wind. Fresh wind slabs likely exists near ridgetops. Fortunately this area lacks buried layers of facets on many slopes. Isolated slopes with a thinner snowpack and ones at lower elevations are good places to find these facets. For today, with some fresh wind slabs and buried facets in specific places, human triggered avalanches are possible and the Avalanche Danger is rated MODERATE.

Bridger, Gallatin and Madison Ranges, and Lionhead area near West Yellowstone:

Recent winds and light snowfall have combined to form fresh wind slabs. Ski patrols haven't triggered many wind slabs but have triggered enough to warn us to watch for them in the backcountry.

Another problem is weak faceted crystals buried 1.5 to 2.5 feet deep. In some places this layer exists near the ground (photo), while in other places it exists in the middle of the snowpack (photo). Recent avalanches occurred on these facets on Alex Lowe Peak in Hyalite Canyon, in Beehive Basin, and on Lionhead. Also a small piece of slab broke on these facets on Mount Ellis in the northern Gallatin Range yesterday. The good news is that these facets are generally very easy to feel with you shovel as you dig a snowpit and easy to see in the snowpit wall (photo). The bad news is that it's hard to predict the presence of this layer based on aspect and elevation. Digging a snowpit in a few different places is best to determine if it exists.

Today, fresh wind slabs will be easy to trigger on wind loaded slopes steeper than 35 degrees where the Avalanche Danger is rated CONSIDERABLE. With a buried layer of facets that has produced recent avalanches, it is definitely possible to trigger an avalanche on all other slopes where the Avalanche Danger is rated MODERATE.

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

EDUCATION, PHOTOS, SNOWPITS, and VIDEOS

1. For links to Articles, Education and (photos), (snowpits), or (videos) listed in the above report, please visit this Link.

2. They have recently uploaded more photos and snowpits to their web site, more than what are linked in the advisory above.

3. They have creating a series of "How To…" stability test videos. So far they have clips on performing a CT and ECT. They are located under Stability Tests on their Resources page.

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.