Huntington Ravine LOW avalanche danger. Natural avalanches are very unlikely and human triggered avalanches are unlikely except in isolated pockets. Normal caution is advised.

You know it has been cold when 23 F (-5 C) brings back memories of tropical beaches and little umbrellas in your glass. An inversion has allowed me to remember such times as I ascended the mountain this morning. Perhaps you will feel the same way if you decide to be out and about today. The high temperatures on the Summit are expected to be in the upper teens F with west winds 55 to 70 mph (88 to 113 kph) and decrease later to 40 to 55 mph (65 to 88 kph). If you size this weather up to what we have had lately, it is quite pleasant. If you aren't broken in to winter weather yet, I would guess you might disagree with me. A weak Clipper will bring a chance of snow showers to the mountains with an inch (2.5 cm) or less of accumulation forecasted. This is one detail you will want to watch today. If the mountains manage to squeeze more snow out of this system it could affect our avalanche danger. Another Clipper will bring snow on Thursday with light accumulations expected.

Today's stability issues are primarily new slabs that formed yesterday as NW winds loaded 3.6" (9.1 cm) of new snow into parts of Tuckerman Ravine. The areas of most concern are the Lip and Sluice followed by Right Gully. Other areas posted at Moderate are barely in the Moderate rating based on the overall absence of new slabs. However, the slabs that are in these locations are too big to consider an isolated pocket. Left Gully and Hillman's Highway are good examples of areas posted at Moderate where safe travel and route finding skills will allow you to avoid the problematic snow. Areas posted at Low do have isolated pockets of snow that you need to respect. This includes the Lower Snowfields in Tuckerman and Yale and Central in Huntington to name a few. Yesterday's winds were persistent out of the NW with a peak wind gust at 91 mph (145 kph). As a result many areas in Huntington became scoured. If you plan on climbing there, stay on the old hard surface whenever possible. I plan on putting a couple of photos on the website of Huntington Ravine from this morning for you to see. I am still impressed by how much last week's winds scoured snow from the gullies leaving them with less snow than they had before last weeks storm. One notable thing that has resulted from this is the increased amount of ice exposed in O'Dell's.

A secondary stability concern today is the hard slabs that are lingering from last week. I feel that these are generally going to be difficult to trigger but I have some concern about smaller avalanches stepping down into the older hard slab resulting in a much larger avalanche. The Lip area has the most potential for this to happen. Keep this in the back of your mind if you opt to travel in that area.

The Lion Head Winter Route is open. This is a steep and challenging route. Crampons, an ice axe, and the ability to properly use this equipment are necessary for safe travel on this route. The Little Headwall is forecasted as it has filled in with snow, however, it is quite a thrash to get into and out of the skiable terrain. The John Sherburne Ski Trail is open and has good coverage. Expect variable conditions including scoured sections and large drifts.