Snow cloaks valley
Roads closed; avalanche warning delays skiing
By GREG STAHL
Express Staff Writer
Two
feet of new snow fell on the Wood River Valley and surrounding mountains Monday and
Tuesday, closing area roads and elevating the danger of natural and human-triggered
avalanches.
State Highway 20, from Highway 75 to Carey and from Carey to Craters of
the Moon National Monument was closed.
Additionally, Galena Summit from Galena Lodge to the base of the north
side of the pass was closed; and Highway 75 from Stanley to a point 13 miles down the
Salmon River valley was buried and inaccessible to automobiles.
Meanwhile,
skiers piled up at the bases of Sun Valley Co.’s Bald Mountain as the ski patrol
worked to clear avalanche danger. Skiers and snowboarders were allowed to board lifts
after a one hour delay, at 10 a.m.
"We had quite a bit of [avalanche] activity all over the
place," ski patrol director Bruce Malone said in an interview. "We had natural
activity and activity caused by explosives and by ski cuts [to test the snow.] We’re
still getting it now," he said at 12:30 p.m. yesterday.
Malone said the new snow enabled the ski patrol to open the entire
front side of the mountain yesterday, and that it would be very likely that the bowls
would open today.
"The skiing is deep and soft and getting better and better,"
he said.
According to the Sun Valley Avalanche Center’s avalanche report,
the new snow piled up on the existing, weak layers and has resulted in "high"
danger.
"Our
snowfall totals are really starting to add up at this time," the report stated.
"In the last 24 hours we have received 21 inches of snow on the valley floor and over
two feet above 9,000 feet. We’ve seen lots of wind…with gusts over 80 miles per
hour on the ridge tops, which has transported a lot of new snow on a variety of old snow
surfaces.
"Human triggered and natural avalanches are very possible today.
If a backcountry slope is steep enough to make turns on, you are putting yourself and your
skiing or boarding partners at a very high risk."
The avalanche center predicted another six inches of snow by nightfall
yesterday. According to a National Weather Service forecast, snow should continue through
the night and into tomorrow, though accumulations are expected to fall off from the rapid
pace of Monday night.
