Avalanche Advisory: Saturday - Jan 16, 2021 | Eastern Sierra Avalanche Center

Avalanche Problem 1: Normal Caution

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advisory discussion

Unseasonably warm temperatures and mostly sunny skies will warm snow surfaces throughout the day today. While this will mostly be a concern in how enjoyable it makes travel conditions, on steep slopes with southerly exposure where enough snow actually resides, small loose wet instabilities could become concerning. If the slope is no longer supportable to your skis it may be possible to start a small slough that could knock someone off their feet in steep terrain.

The thin snowpack with many obstacles is still the greatest safety concern. Firm snow surfaces make it prudent to carry crampons and ice-ax/whippet for endeavors into steeper more exposed terrain.

Continue to practice safe travel protocols as the existence of a pocket of unstable snow is never impossible.

recent observations

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-1/15 – Mammoth Area: Warming snow and conditions

-1/15 – Mammoth Area – South slopes of Mammoth Mtn: Warming snow and small rollerballs.

-1/14 - Virginia lakes – South Gully Dunderberg: Surface warming.

-1/14 - Mammoth Area: Surface warming, variable surface conditions.

Weather and CURRENT CONDITIONS

weather summary

Expect another unseasonably warm day today, although a few degrees cooler than yesterday, with highs reaching into the mid-40s around 10,000’. Skies should be mostly sunny with light winds except over ridgetops where gusts may reach into the 40s out of the NW this morning before calming in the afternoon.

Sunday should be quite similar as today, although a couple degrees warmer and even less cloud. Sunday night thru Monday a cold-front should push thru bringing very strong NE winds and dropping temperatures back down to normal, along with a slight chance of light snowfall.

Two-Day Mountain Weather Forecast Produced in partnership with the Reno NWS

For 8,000 ft. to 10,000 ft.

	Saturday	Saturday Night	Sunday
Weather:	Partly cloudy then becoming sunny. Snow levels 8500 feet. Chance of precipitation is 0%.	Clear. Snow levels 8500 feet. Chance of precipitation is 0%.	Sunny. Snow levels 7500 feet increasing to 8500 feet in the afternoon. Chance of precipitation is 0%.
Temperatures:	42 to 50. deg. F.	28 to 34. deg. F.	44 to 52. deg. F.
Mid Slope Winds:	Light winds.	Light winds.	Light winds.
Expected snowfall:	No accumulation. \| SWE = none. in.	No accumulation. \| SWE = none. in.	No accumulation. \| SWE = none. in.

Over 10,000 ft.

	Saturday	Saturday Night	Sunday
Weather:	Partly cloudy then becoming sunny. Snow levels 9000 feet. Chance of precipitation is 0%.	Clear. Snow levels 9000 feet. Chance of precipitation is 0%.	Sunny. Snow levels 8500 feet. Chance of precipitation is 0%.
Temperatures:	35 to 43. deg. F.	27 to 33. deg. F.	36 to 44. deg. F.
Ridge Top Winds:	Northwest 15 to 25 mph with gusts to 50 mph in the morning becoming light.	North around 20 mph.	North around 15 mph with gusts to 30 mph.
Expected snowfall:	No accumulation. \| SWE = none. in.	No accumulation. \| SWE = none. in.	No accumulation. \| SWE = none. in.

Disclaimer

This Avalanche Advisory is designed to generally describe avalanche conditions where local variations always occur. This product only applies to backcountry areas located outside established ski area boundaries. The information in this Avalanche Advisory is provided by the Eastern Sierra Avalanche Center, who is solely responsible for its content.