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Snow In The Air In Jackson Hole

By Lauren M. Whaley, 12-15-06

In waning light and waxing wind Thursday afternoon, my partner and I only made it halfway up Mount Glory.

Although we had been checking the Teton Pass Web Cam and following the major storm lingering over Jackson Hole for the past couple days, we were not expecting the uphill slog in waist deep snow.

When the path breaks out from the trees into open snow, it disappears. We dusk hikers were forced to wade uphill through wet, wind-deposited heavy snow.

We took turns with our dog breaking trail and zig-zagged our way to the halfway point just in time for a snowy, windy, cloudy sunset.

After nearly a foot of dense snow fell in the mountains Wednesday night and Thursday on a crusty surface, we stayed in the trees on the way down, for fear of triggering a slide.

The Bridger-Teton Avalanche Center issued an avalanche warning Thursday morning, which continued Friday night and was downgraded to a "watch" Friday morning.

Forecasters worry that the new snow's high water content on top of the crusty sliding surface will cause several avalanches.

On their Web site jhavalanche.org, forecasters reported a natural avalanche in Hoback Canyon and a highway department triggered slide on Glory Bowl early Thursday morning.

At the Jackson Hole Mountain Resort, ski patrol triggered over 50 avalanches Thursday morning on a variety of aspects. The crown depths of those slides ranged from two to five feet, the site reports.

The center predicts more snow today before colder air enters the region tonight. Wind will continue as another five to 10 inches fall in the mountains today.

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