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

It is another outstanding winter day on the mountain with bright sunshine and calm winds. Yesterday's weather was also near perfect. The average wind speed on the Summit over the past 24 hours was 9.8 mph (16 kph)! The nice weather and relatively stable snowpack allowed us to get into a lot of terrain in Tuckerman to have a closer look at what is going on in the snow. As usual we found variability in the snowpack with a notable amount of faceted crystals lurking. Overall the consistency and character of the slabs that can be found in the Ravine don't concern us and the facets were something interesting to look at rather than be concerned with. The Lip is the one area that stands out where these faceted crystals are making me reluctant to drop it to Low. There are a two primary factors that are good for the stability of the Lip. One is the surface slab received a notable amount of solar gain over the past two days and I think you can expect to find a thin melt-freeze crust on the surface. The other piece of data that is good for the stability in the Lip is the density of the underlying slab. I was finding pencil hard slab that had good tensile strength and offers some bridging over the faceted layers. With these two factors in mind I think that triggering an avalanche in this location would be difficult. So why the Moderate rating? I was able to find a consistent facet layer around 90 cm down in the snowpack that was very well developed. I was also getting failure on a less developed facet layer in my compression tests at 50 cm. The density of the slab is acting as a barrier for vapor transport and allowing for some impressive facet growth. The Lip is the one place where the size and consistency of the slabs have me thinking twice about the stability. Again, I think it would be challenging to initiate an avalanche here, however, if you do it could be destructive. I expect more solar gain to effect the north side of the Ravines today. If you head into these locations consider the potential for icefall.

With the exception of a few snow showers, it looks like Friday is our next chance for accumulating snow. At this time it seems like we could see a significant storm. Keep checking the advisory to see how this is developing. If it all plays out you can expect elevated avalanche danger over the weekend.

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 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 generally good coverage with some scoured sections.