STORY BY SAWTOOTH AVALANCHE CENTER
PHOTO BY KAREN BOSSICK
#L#While the mountain snowpack is off to a slow start, there is enough snow to produce dangerous avalanches. We have begun issuing Daily Avalanche Forecasts for most of our forecast area. If you are waiting for more snow before you break out the skis and snowmobiles, you can relive last year’s epic avalanche season by reading our Annual Report: https://www.sawtoothavalanche.com/2022-23-annual-report/.
We’re thrilled to announce developments at the Sawtooth Avalanche Center (SAC):
- Additions to the Team: The SAC is excited to welcome Brooke Maushund to the forecasting team. Prior to joining the SAC, Brooke used her B.S. in Resource Science from UC Berkeley to work on off-grid renewable energy projects in Tanzania and Eastern Nicaragua. She then worked as a weather station technician with the Park Service, as a ski patroller, ski guide, avalanche instructor, snow surveyor, and professional avalanche observer for operations in CA and WA. She has spent the summer months managing risk as a member of Yosemite Valley Search and Rescue, on a Denali rescue patrol, and, most recently, as a climbing ranger on Mt. Rainier.
Desiree Wickwar will be working as an intern with the avalanche center in 2024. Desiree holds an M.S. in Ecology and manages Idaho’s Integrated Pest Management-Extension
Implementation Program for the University of Idaho and the USDA. She distills complex pest management science and communicates findings to the public, government agencies, and agricultural operations. Her expertise in communicating science in simple terms will be a great asset to the avalanche center. We’re fortunate to work with and learn from Desiree
this season.
- Technology Improvements: The SAC continues to be involved in the development of local and national level avalanche forecasting tools. Visit https://www.sawtoothavalanche.com/observations/#/view/observations to check out the redesigned Observations, Avalanche Occurrence, and Data Visualization features. Here, you’ll find information about avalanche activity and field observations in both map-based and tabular formats. The improved Data Visualization page displays simple graphs and plots to quickly understand what’s happening in the mountains.
We helped launch an app! The Northwest Avalanche Center (NWAC) in Seattle developed a clean, user-friendly app, and they invited the SAC and Friends of the SAC to help fine-tune it. It's called Avy. Avalanche and weather forecasts. Weather station data. User observations. All wrapped into an easy-to-navigate UX that you can save for offline use. Avy is your gateway to reliable avalanche and weather information. For the 2023-24 season, app users can access data from the Sawtooth Avalanche Center and Northwest Avalanche Center. In future seasons, any avalanche center that connects to the National Avalanche Center (NAC) forecast platform can opt-in to display their information in the app. We’re excited to share this streamlined tool! Download the free app at Google Play or the Apple App Store by searching Avy: Avalanche & Weather Info.
- Expanding Avalanche Products: In conjunction with the FS National Avalanche Center and neighboring avalanche centers, SAC staff continue work on a feasibility study on bringing avalanche information and education products to eastern Idaho. SAC Forecaster Ethan Davis has presented initial findings at several public events and to Caribou-Targhee NF staff. We plan to similarly evaluate the Boise and Trinity Mountains in the future. SAC staff are members of working groups that meet regularly to determine the best way to provide avalanche information in these unsupported regions.
- Avalanche Education in Spanish: The SAC and Friends of the SAC remain committed to increasing avalanche information and education in Spanish. SAC staff publishes Avalanche Warning information in Spanish via social media and on the radio. This season, we’ll add to our Spanish language resources by releasing an Avalanche Awareness video in Spanish.
For the third year in a row, SAC and Friends of the SAC staff will present Avalanche Awareness classes to Spanish-speaking snow removal workers. Local snow removal, roofing, and maintenance companies partnered with the SAC and Friends of SAC to design content that meets the needs of Spanish-speaking users. This includes essential workers who interact with avalanche terrain in our urban interfaces while performing snow removal work.
How can you get the Forecasts? We are publishing daily Backcountry Avalanche Forecasts at www.sawtoothavalanche.com. Forecasts are issued each morning by 7 a.m. and are available on the website as well as by email subscription. On weekday mornings, you can also tune into KECH 95.3 FM or KDPI 88.5 FM to hear a quick summary of the current avalanche conditions. The Sawtooth NF Facebook page (@sawtoothnationalforest) has daily updates, too. Longtime avalanche center partner The Friends of the SAC post information on conditions, avalanche education, and events on Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram (@ or # sawtoothavy).
The SAC covers over 3,200 square miles but only has one or two forecasters in the field daily. Information from other backcountry users is critical to producing accurate Avalanche Forecasts. There are several ways to submit observations:
- Backcountry travelers can post their observations by clicking the blue ‘Submit Observation’ button at the lower left of every page on the SAC website www.sawtoothavalanche.com.
- The Avy app allows you to enter your observation while you’re offline in the mountains, automatically submitting it when you return to cell service.
- Email photos and text to info@sawtoothavalanche.com.
- Text and images can be sent via SMS (Text) to (208) 481-5921.
- Social Media: Backcountry users can use the hashtag #sawtoothavy on Instagram and Twitter when posting about their day or send a Facebook message to @sawtoothavy. Interested users can also follow the #sawtoothavy hashtag to see what others are observing in the backcountry.
Have you taken an avalanche course lately? The Friends of the SAC, a local 501(c)3 organization, have a full slate of Avalanche Awareness and Introduction to Avalanches education programs – visit https://www.sawtoothavalanche.com/classes-events/ for class offerings and event information. You can find recordings of most of these offering on our YouTube channel at https://www.youtube.com/@SawtoothAvalancheCenter. Our class schedule, as well as other avalanche safety programs throughout the state, can also be found on our Idaho Avalanche Education Calendar: https://www.sawtoothavalanche.com/idaho-avalanche-education-calendar/. Contact the Friends’ Education Coordinator at education@sawtoothavalanche.com to inquire about hosting an Avalanche Awareness class or event.
The Friends, have some exciting, live community events planned this season. Highlights include the multiple programs of Banff Film Festival movies Feb. 2-4 and Avalanche Safety Week (Feb. 12-18).The Friends host dozens of free or low-cost education programs every year, and they provide extensive financial support to the SAC. The avalanche center would not exist in its current state without the Friends’ hard work and the community support the SAC receives. Go check out their new website at https://friends.sawtoothavalanche.com/ to stay up to date on the latest news and events, education offerings, and ways to support their mission.
Our popular “Digging Deeper” education series will be presented live and in-person. Recordings of each presentation will also be available on the Sawtooth Avalanche Center YouTube channel. These events will be held monthly throughout the winter. Intended as an informal, “fireside chat” style program, SAC forecasters will give brief presentations on tools, tricks, technology, and other topics of interest, leaving plenty of time for discussion. Our next Digging Deeper is scheduled for Wednesday, Dec. 20 at 7 pm in Ketchum. For details, check the website, keep an eye on @sawtoothavy or sign up for our email list at: http://eepurl.com/c9RhEb
Each Friday afternoon or evening, we post a brief “Weekend Update” video that covers recent snow and avalanche conditions and what to expect over the weekend and following days. You’ll find this product on our website as well as social media and YouTube.
If you’re out sliding and riding in the hills, please let us know what you’re seeing, even if you don’t trigger any avalanches. Hope to see many of you out playing in the snow soon!
Forecasters Ethan Davis, Brooke Maushund, Scott Savage, and Ben Vandenbos
Email: info@sawtoothavalanche.com
For additional information about the Sawtooth National Forest call 208-737-3200 or visit the Sawtooth National Forest website at www.fs.usda.gov/sawtooth and like us on Facebook at. https://www.facebook.com/pages/US-Forest-Service-Sawtooth-National-Forest/986556001373037