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 freezing fog in the morning. Highs 24°F to 30°F.

Tonight: Mostly clear. Southwest winds around 15 mph after midnight. Lows 1°F to 7°F.

Saturday: Partly cloudy. Highs 23°F to 29°F.

Saturday Night: Partly cloudy. Lows 2°F to 8°F.

Sunday: Partly cloudy. Highs 23°F to 29°F.

Sunday Night: Partly cloudy. Lows 3°F to 9°F.

Monday / Martin Luther King Jr Day: Partly cloudy. Highs 24°F to 30°F.

Monday Night / Martin Luther King Jr Night: Mostly clear. Patchy fog after midnight. Lows 2°F to 12°F.

Tuesday: Mostly sunny. Patchy fog in the morning. Highs 25°F to 31°F.

Tuesday Night: Mostly clear. Patchy fog after midnight. Lows 2°F to 12°F.

Wednesday: Partly cloudy in the morning then becoming mostly cloudy. A 20 percent chance of snow. Highs 24°F to 30°F.

Wednesday Night: Mostly cloudy with a 30 percent chance of snow. Lows 9°F to 15°F.

Thursday: Mostly cloudy with a 30 percent chance of snow. Highs 17°F to 23°F.

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Mountain Weather

A ridge of high pressure over the Pacific Northwest is responsible for warm, sunny and windy conditions over Southwest Montana. This morning mountain temperatures were in the mid 20s Fahrenheit with valley temperatures in the mid teens Fahrenheit. Westerly winds were averaging 15 to 30 mph with gusts reaching 40 to 50 mph. Winds will remain strong today and temperatures should approach 32 degrees Fahrenheit, but some places like the Bridger Range could see temperatures in the 40s Fahrenheit.

Snowpack and Avalanche Discussion:

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

In many places there is little snow left for winds to transport (photo). Today's strong winds will find the last remaining snow crystals and move them to the lee sides of ridges and gullies. Most wind slabs are at least 24 to 48 hours old. These wind slabs will be more difficult to trigger as more time passes but they remain the primary avalanche problem today.

Another problem is a layer of weak, faceted snow crystals buried 6 to 16 inches deep (snowpit). Because this layer is not buried deeply but could produce an avalanche, dig multiple snowpits about two feet deep taking less than a minute for each. This layer seems to be weakest in areas with a snowpack 3 feet deep or less. Also, it mostly exists in areas below treeline that don't usually see much wind. Slopes with soft powder are prime locations to find this layer. It is worth noting that two days ago this layer produced collapsing and cracking for me just north of Big Sky on a southerly aspect, a clear sign of instability, and Eric and Karl found this layer capable of producing long crack propagations where it was capped by a hard wind slab (video), another sign of instability.

With this weak layer lurking on some slopes and hard wind slabs on others, triggering an avalanche today is possible, and the Avalanche Danger is rated MODERATE.

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.

EDUCATION, 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.