Huntington Ravine has LOW and MODERATE avalanche danger. O'Dells, Pinnacle, Yale, Damnation and North gullies have Low avalanche danger. Natural avalanches are very unlikely and human triggered avalanches are unlikely EXCEPT IN ISOLATED POCKETS. These pockets do exist. Some examples of this can be found high in O'Dells and Yale. Normal caution is advised. The Escape Hatch, South and Central gullies have Moderate avalanche danger. Natural avalanches are unlikely and human triggered avalanches are possible. Unstable slabs are possible. Use caution in steeper terrain.

The concern today will remain new slabs on crust that developed Thursday night and yesterday. Avalanche activity helped release instabilities in many areas, but loading did occur after the fact as many crown lines are buried this morning. Once again we have mixed variable conditions. You will find a very hard crust in different locations like down low on the south side of the Bowl or under Right Gully. But very close by you will observe slabs sitting on crust. These areas possess instabilities and REALIZE THEY HAVE JUST COME DOWN FROM CONSIDERABLE AND HIGH AND EXPECT THEM TO BE ON THE UPPER END OF THE MODERATE RATING. We aren't too worried about natural activity this morning and feel slabs don't quite meet the human triggered descriptors of 'probable' or 'likely'. This is why they have fallen to the Moderate descriptors. With that said it is a Saturday and the mountains will probably be filled with 2-legged triggers trying to have fun. The more triggers the higher the potential that a weakness will be found causing failure, fracture, and the subsequent avalanche. I would not be surprised to see a human triggered avalanche today. Keep your avalanche eyes open. Some examples of instabilities exist in the Sluice, in and under the Lip, high in the Bowl under the Headwall ice, the Chute, and high in Left gully. Instabilites are not unique to these areas alone, but offer good examples of slab on crust.

It can be hard for many to believe that 8.5cm (3.3in) of snow with an additional 5cm (2in) on the way can produce Considerable and High avalanche danger. But this is exactly what played out yesterday when natural avalanche activity confirmed our morning advisory. Loading occurred in earnest through the morning hours as west winds increased producing natural avalanches in Hillmans, the Chute, and the south side of the Headwall in Tuckerman. The north side of the Ravine did not clear enough to tell if crown lines were present. This morning most of the crown lines on the south side are filled back in and no crowns are visible near the Lip or Sluice. In Huntington Ravine avalanches occurred in South, O'Dells, Pinnacle, and perhaps Central. Upon viewing the Ravine at 1:30pm I did not see evidence of any other activity.

AVALANCHE ACCIDENT YESTERDAY At 9:30am 2 climbers were struck by an avalanche that likely come out of O'Dells Gully in Huntington Ravine as they began heading up the fan in 30-meter visibility. All areas in Huntington were posted at "Considerable" and "High" and a Snow Ranger spent significant time discussing the problems of their intended plans with them around 7am. They decided to attempt North Gully none the less by heading up the middle of the Fan and then traversing over to North. But they didn't get very far into their intended route. They were hit by an avalanche as the stopped to adjust some clothing and were brought what they estimated to be only 12 and 15 meters. One was completely buried, but was some what close to the surface and was able to extricate himself while his partner was buried up to his waist. They walked away (quickly) shaken up, but essentially uninjured. Look for a full write up soon on tuckerman.org and possibly avalanche.org. Remember when deciding to enter avalanche terrain or not go for the bull's-eye information. In this case I would of considered new snow overnight with winds loading the aspects I wanted to travel in, more snow forecasted, discussions with local avalanche professionals that follow daily trends all winter not recommending my plans, traveling under a High avalanche danger rating in 30 meter visibility, and having no avalanche equipment. Any one of these should throw up a red flag. All of these should bury you with the Mother of all red flags. You want to have fun, but use common sense and remember the mountains will be here another day.

THE LION HEAD WINTER ROUTE IS OPEN. Mountaineering skills and equipment are required for safe travel on this route. All visitors traveling on steep terrain should be prepared with crampons and an ice axe.

The John Sherburne Ski Trail has improved dramatically with new snow. But expect hidden hazards in the form of turf, rocks, bushes, and deep waterbars lurking under the new cover.

As always, this advisory is one more tool to help you make your own decisions in avalanche terrain. It should be used along with your own snow stability assessments, knowledge of safe travel techniques, skill in reading mountain weather's effect on the snowpack, and avalanche rescue. To improve these skills take an avalanche course. We have all the avalanche courses offered in and around the Mt. Washington Valley this winter on our website, tuckerman.org.