Pro Field Report

Basic Information

Observation Details

Observation Date:
March 1, 2022
Submitted:
March 1, 2022
Observer:
SAC - Savage
Zone or Region:
Sawtooth and Western Smoky Mtns
Location:
viewing Sawtooth Mtns from the highway and Stanley (all elevations and aspects visible from HWY 75 from Galena Summit-Stanley (but with marginal visibility))

Signs of Unstable Snow

Recent Avalanches? 
Yes
Cracking? 
None Experienced
Collapsing? 
None Experienced
Cracking and Collapsing fields are Not Applicable

Bottom Line

Dozens of small, natural, wet loose avalanches observed in the Sawtooth Mtns, despite marginal visibility. They appeared to be primarily caused by prolonged rain showers last night and today.

Advanced Information

Weather Summary

Cloud Cover:
Overcast
Temperature:
30s F at valley floor
New/Recent Snowfall:
Rain at valley floor, no measurable snowfall today.

Rain-snow line appeared to be around 8500' (plus or minus 500') last night and today. The mountains were obscured above 8000' for much of the day, but visibility was a little better from 1500-1730 hrs. Precipitation tapered off in the afternoon to scattered showers. Light rain/drizzle at 1800 hrs.

Avalanche Observations

 #  Date Location Size Type Bed Sfc Depth Trigger Comments Photo
30 Sawtooth Mtns - eastern front
E 		D1.5 WL N-Natural I saw dozens of small loose snow avalanches from the McDonald Peak area to the mountains SW of Stanley. Avalanches were on SE, E, and NE aspects for the most part. Most slides appeared to originate near the middle/upper elevation boundary. Most of the slides appeared to be D1 in size, but there's a chance some could have approached D2. I probably saw only a small percentage of the avalanche activity that occurred. I did not see any slab avalanches. None