Slide risk rises while lake ice melts

The Flathead Avalanche Center on Monday issued a “high” avalanche danger for elevations above 6,000 feet, meaning both natural and human-caused slides are likely.

Recent heavy wet snow and rain on snow, combined with wind, will likely create widespread areas of unstable snow, according to the warning that applies to the Whitefish, Swan and Flathead ranges, as well as the southern portion of Glacier National Park.

Warm weather at lower elevations, meanwhile, is melting ice along shorelines of lakes and ponds.

In the mountains, high-elevation crosswinds have created snow slabs on the downwind sides of the ridgelines. A rain crust underneath those slabs has created a high potential for them to slide downhill, including some locations above 7,000 feet.

Lower elevations, from 3,500 to 6,00 feet, also have a significant likelihood of human-caused avalanches and a possibility of natural slides.

The avalanche center recommends avoiding travel in high-elevation avalanche terrain until the advisory is lifted as well as extra caution in lower elevations prone to slides.

Avalanche terrain is defined as slopes steeper than 30 degrees, or flatter slopes downhill from steep terrain. Additional rain and snow could make wet avalanches more likely.

For daily avalanche updates, visit www.flatheadavalanche.org/advisories.

As evidenced by the cancellation of this weekend’s Montana Pond Hockey Classic, ice conditions in Northwest Montana also continue to deteriorate.

The hockey tournament first was nixed at Foy’s Lake — where ice has pulled away from the shore — and then the backup site at Woodland Park also was deemed unsafe.

Chancy Jeschke, Snappy Sport Senter Fishing Department manager, said he has gotten several reports of unsafe ice levels throughout the region.

“It’s starting to pull from the shorelines already, so it’s not even safe to get on,” Jeschke said Monday. “The lakes that tend to have a shallower base, or shorelines with reeds and bulrushes, those tend to hold the heat more. Those shorelines will go faster, and lakes that have more springs.”

It’s unusual for this time of year, he said, but anglers have had success on a few lakes that are still holding their surfaces.

Pike and perch were biting at Smith Lake, where Jeschke said he heard the ice was still about 10 inches thick. Lower Stillwater and Rogers lakes also reportedly were fishable.

Still, Jeschke said anglers heading out should take extra care, bring the right equipment and test the thickness frequently as they make their way onto the ice.

“The conditions are changing daily,” he said. “Probably as of right now, until we start getting some colder nights to lock things up, people need to be very careful.”

The warm spell isn’t going anywhere anytime soon, National Weather Service meteorologist Travis Boothe said on Monday.

“We’re mainly staying above normal temperatures, with no end in sight for at least this next week,” he said. “There’s some hints that maybe it’ll cool down by this Saturday into next week, but that will most likely just be temperatures that are seasonable rather than a cold snap.”

The Weather Service’s Missoula office is forecasting highs near or above 50 degrees today and Wednesday, with overnight lows staying above freezing until Thursday night.

Reporter Sam Wilson can be reached at 758-4407 or by email at swilson@dailyinterlake.com.