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.

Today: Partly cloudy in the morning then clearing. Patchy fog in the morning. Highs 14°F to 20°F.

Tonight: Mostly clear. Patchy fog after midnight. Lows -6°F to 2°F.

Thursday: Not as cold. Mostly sunny. Patchy fog in the morning. Highs 23°F to 29°F.

Thursday Night: Mostly clear. Patchy fog after midnight. Lows -3°F to 5°F.

Friday: Mostly sunny in the morning then becoming partly cloudy. Patchy fog in the morning. Highs 21°F to 27°F.

Friday Night: Mostly clear. Patchy fog after midnight. Lows -4°F to 2°F.

Saturday: Sunny. Patchy fog in the morning. Highs 21°F to 27°F.

Saturday Night: Mostly clear. Patchy fog after midnight. Lows 6°F to 12°F.

Sunday: Partly cloudy. Patchy fog in the morning. Highs 21°F to 27°F.

Sunday Night: Partly cloudy. Lows 11°F to 17°F.

Monday: Partly cloudy. Highs 21°F to 27°F.

Monday Night: Partly cloudy. Lows 11°F to 17°F.

Tuesday: Partly cloudy in the morning then clearing. Highs 24°F to 30°F.

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Mountain Weather

This morning I'm reporting no snow, clear skies, light winds and mountain temperatures in the single digits Fahrenheit. High pressure will keep skies sunny. Today's temperatures will warm into the low 20s Fahrenheit and winds will remain light out of the northwest at 10 to 15 mph. Tonight will be cold with single digit temperatures Fahrenheit, but over the next few days a general warming trend is predicted under mostly sunny skies.

Snowpack and Avalanche Discussion:

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

Our snowpack is generally stable. It's becoming increasingly rare to find weak layers of facets near the bottom of the snowpack breaking in our stability tests. Natural and human triggered slides are also rare, which, given the high volume of traffic in the backcountry last week, is a positive sign.

Generally safe avalanche conditions prevail, but as a student of the snow I know that small avalanches are still possible (photo). Snowpacks less than three feet deep have the weakest snow. Without new snow or a wind-load these slopes are mostly fine, but a quick snowpit and stability test will take the guesswork out of decision-making. The top 6 to 12 inches of our snowpack is getting weaker by the day. Cold clear nights and warmer, sunny days create faceted, weaker, unbonded snow through a process called near-surface faceting (article). The snow is not static, and unfortunately today's sunny weather creates tomorrow's weak layer. In isolated areas wind has blown thin slabs on top of these facets and it's not out of the question to trigger a small avalanche, which a skier reported doing on Saddle Peak yesterday.

Without new snow or widespread wind-loading, the snowpack is not under any stress and is enjoying a breather after the holidays, just like the rest of us. For today, throughout our entire forecast area, the Avalanche Danger is rated LOW on all slopes.

From the Sierras: Watch and Learn

http://unofficialnetworks.com/skier-buried-avalanche-tahoe-video-rescue-114323/

When five backcountry skiers share just two beacons and shovels, this is what you end up with. Not exactly a crack team of rescuers.

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.

PHOTOS, SNOWPITS, and VIDEOS

1. For links to Articles, Education and (photos) and (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.