2017/18 Alpine, Wyoming Snow Conditions Rockin' M Ranch

January 12, 2018 Alpine, WY Snow Report Rockin' M Ranch

January 12, 2018 Alpine WY Snow Report Rockin’ M Ranch
It has been putting down wet heavy snow in the valley for the last 36 hours. We ended up with 9 new inches here at the Rockin’ M. The local ski resorts are reporting storm totals of Targhee 23” and Jackson Hole 22”. The local snotel sites all look around 20”. Since the 10th Blindbull went from 51” to 71”, Willow Creek 44” to 63”, and Spring Creek (Afton) 42” to 59”. It may be wise to stay off the steep stuff for a few days. The avalanche danger is high. BTNF Report Below:

Very Dangerous avalanche conditions exist. Heavy snowfall and strong winds have resulted in conditions where natural avalanches are likely and humans venturing into avalanche terrain are very likely to trigger slides. These avalanches could involve new wind slabs and be small to large in size or they could be very large, involving deeper persistent instabilities within the snowpack. Travel in avalanche terrain is not recommended today. Teton Pass is closed this morning. WYDOT was able to trigger small avalanches in Hoback Canyon early this morning and then triggered a large slide in Glory Bowl on Teton Pass.

January 18, 2018 Alpine, WY Snow Report

January 18, 2018 Alpine, WY Snow Report Rockin’ M Ranch
I rode both North Willow and the main Willow drainage today. Both parking lots are plowed out as they had been in the past (not last year). The main trail was freshly groomed. Although the snow throughout star Valley has been a little thin from 5500-7500, Willow looked as most years, plenty of snow. A few signs of some slab type slides, but they all appeared to be a week or more old. The snow that was not tracked up was soft enough to carve well, probably sinking in about a foot. There were about three open creek crossings going up North Willow which were pretty easy. Of course the goat trail was rough as always. The snowtel site, which sits about 8000 feet, is showing 55”, which is 114% of average (snow water equivalent). In all, looking pretty good. Snow in the forecast for the next several days.

January 20, 2018 Alpine, WY Snow Report

January 20, 2018 Alpine, WY Snow Report Rockin' M Ranch
Yesterdays storm left about an inch in the valley. The Salt River Range snotel sites are showing about 9" of new snow. The local ski resorts are reporting 6". More snow in the forecast.

January 23, 2018 Alpine, WY Snow Report

January 23, 2018 Alpine, WY Snow Report Rockin' M Ranch
We picked up another 4" here at the cabins in the last 24 hours. The local ski resorts both received 16" in the last 24 hours. Between talking to guests that rode yesterday and looking at the snotels, it looks like the Salt Range picked up about a foot of new. It is best conditions of the year. Great time to be out here. We are predicted to have two days of sun followed by another three days of snow.

January 29, 2018 Alpine, WY Snow Report

January 29, 2018 Alpine, WY Snow Report Rockin' M Ranch
The last few days have brought us a few waves of snow. At the end of Saturday we had picked up about 6" here at the cabins which settled down to about 3" of wet heavy snow after a warmer day on Sunday. The mountains appeared to have faired pretty well. Targhee ski resort is reporting 21" in 72 hours, and Jackson Hole 11". The Salt River Range looks to have picked up about a foot to 1.5'. It is a little difficult to get a good read from the snotel sites. The snow appears to be settling very fast. Both Blind Bull and Willow Creek reached over 70" yesterday. The overall snowpack in the Snake River Drainage is at 117% snow water equivalent and 102% total precip. Current avalanche danger is moderate for the Salt River and Wyoming Range. Report from guests that rode Strawberry a few days ago claimed 2-3 feet of powder. That was before this last round of snow.

February 3, 2018 Alpine, WY Snow Report

February 3, 2018 Alpine, WY Snow Report Rockin' M Ranch
It's been 30-40 degrees in the Valley for the last couple of days. We picked up a couple of inches at the cabins yesterday and has been a rain/snow mix since. Snotels and ski resorts are showing about 6 inches of new snow in the last 24 hours.

February 5, 2018 Alpine, WY Snow Conditions

February 5, 2018 Alpine, WY Snow Report Rockin' M Ranch
More of the same, snow level around 7000, and valley temps in the mid 30's. In the last 24 hours Targhee resort 10", Jackson Hole 5", blind bull snotel 10", Willow Creek and Spring Creek 2-6". Snowpack over 8000' still is over 100%. Blind Bull is currently 160%.

February 14, 2018 Alpine, WY Snow Report

February 14, 2018 Alpine, WY Snow Report Rockin' M Ranch
Not much has happened since my last report. Their has been a few light dustings of snow and the temperatures have dropped back to single digits at night and upper 20's to low 30's during the day. The forecast is for snow for the next 5 or so days. Currently there is about 6-10" of hard crusty snow on the valley floor. It is still possible to get around the valley from the cabins, but the parking lots and roads are melted out going through Alpine. You can still ride the edge of the Greys River road to get to the gas station. The Greys River trail is fine but icy for the first 7 miles. The snow is still holding out over 8000 feet. The snowpack for the Snake River drainage is 115% snow water equivalent and 102% total precipitation. Blind Bull is at 75", Willow 65", and Spring Creek (Afton) 62".

February 15, 2018 Alpine, WY Snow Report

February 15, 2018 Alpine, WY Snow Report Rockin' M Ranch
I have a guy that should let me know later today what the status is on the slide. The good news is that it snowed 2+ inches at the cabins last night. Blind Bull and Willow Creek snotels look like about 8" of new. Targhee resort is reporting 6" and Jackson Hole 13".

Mike from Scenic Safaris checked it out yesterday. It is blocking the road and still moving. He said you could hear the trees cracking as you stood next to it. His opinion is that maybe a very good rider could ride along the ridge above the slide, but the trail rider is out of luck.

***What this slide means for guests of the Rockin' M or riders in Alpine: The slide is at mile 17 which is beyond trail C and D. Trail C departs at mile 4 and comes back to the Greys River at mile 14 (Murphy Creek). Trail D (little Greys) cuts off at mile 7. Unless you are planning on riding to the Box Y for lunch (28 miles) or trying to get to Blind Bull, which is now about a 50 mile ride, due to the Blind Bull slide, it does not have much of an impact on the majority of our guests or riders in Alpine. When I guide full day tours (trail rides with some off trail) I would either go to the Box Y or I would ride the trail system closer to town. A good alternative route (closer to Alpine), rather than going to the box Y that has more off trail opportunities is: Ride 4 miles from the lot, take a right on trail C, ride the trail C loop back to the Greys River, go left at trail A heading downstream towards trail d, make a right at trail D (mile 7), continue up the little greys trail, one option is the elk mountain trail which across from Aspen Hollow(intermediate/advanced riding). If you do not wish to go up Elk mountain, continue up to the McCain Cabin area where there are a bunch of great play areas. From the McCain cabin loop back through Bull Hollow and pick up D trail back to Alpine. This is a great way to spend a day without any sections of the trail being to long and many frequent opportunities to get off the trail to play. There is also some great Boondocking across the little Greys river on Middle Ridge opposite Bull Hollow. I hope this info helps anyone that may be concerned about the slide impacting their Greys River riding.

Below is an article from the Jackson Hole newspaper which gives some better details of the slide.

A massive landslide that could disrupt access into the Wyoming and Salt River ranges for months is slowly overtaking the most heavily trafficked road in the Bridger-Teton National Forest.
Seventeen miles down Greys River Road from Alpine a block of earth is splitting off Middle Ridge, an 8,900-foot timbered ridgeline that divides the Greys and Little Greys rivers. The mountainside likely started moving Feb. 1, when a magnitude 3.4 earthquake struck the exact location, according to the U.S. Geological Survey.
By last weekend, the landslide was active enough that it started contorting and buckling the surface of a popular winter snowmobiling route — and threatening to do much more.

“In my opinion, it’s going to completely take out 300 to 500 yards of the Greys River Road,” said Mike Oltman, engineer and mineral staff officer for the Bridger-Teton.
“It’s huge, and it’s moving all the way into the Greys River,” he said. “It’s going to be quite costly to fix.”
Oltman estimated that the slide is moving 10 to 20 feet a day, with most activity coming during warm afternoons.
“My prediction is if we get a day with lots of rain,” he said, “or it’s 40 degrees and sunny, we’re going to see really significant movement.”
Bridger-Teton officials have closed part of the area because of the hazard of the continually moving earth. One snowmobiler validated the danger Tuesday by ignoring caution signs. He was thrown from his sled after hitting a damaged portion of the road. He sustained “severe injuries,” Oltman said, including broken bones in his face and serious lacerations.
Anyone who ignores the closure and tries to traverse the active landslide is taking a “tremendous risk,” Oltman said.
In the middle of the day Tuesday, he watched a 20-foot-wide chunk of what looked like solid ground at the landslide’s crown slowly erode and fall down the hillside.
The falling flank of mountain hasn’t yet dammed the Greys River, but it has the potential to do so. Northwest Wyoming landslides have formed new small lakes in recent years in places like the Gros Ventre Range’s Crystal Creek and on Willow Creek, on the Hoback River side of the Wyoming Range.
Oltman said the landslide appears similar in scope to the nearby Blindbull Slide, which piled 60 to 80 feet of debris over 300 to 400 yards of Forest Road 10123 during the big melt of spring 2017. The Bridger-Teton secured funds to fix the dead-end road from an emergency relief fund for federal roads, and Oltman has already put in an application for funding from the same program for the new landslide.
One distinction between the two geological events is that the still-moving landslide is in the process of taking out a heavily used route.
“It would be magnitudes more disruptive,” Oltman said.

Greys River Road, he said, attracts more than 400 vehicles a day during peak summer use — more than even the Gros Ventre or Green River Lakes roads.
It’s also the easiest access to the Box Y Lodge and Ranch, which is keeping its business up and running for the winter. Lodge staff members have been snowmobiling groceries in from Alpine, walking the goods across the debris path and hopping onto another sled to motor them the rest of the way to the ranch, co-owner Meagan Haberberger said.
“It doesn’t hinder our business as much as everyone thinks,” she said.
Daytime visitors are blocked for the time being, but overnight guests have still been able to reach the Box Y by snowmobiling in from the Green River side or from Afton, she said.
The Bridger-Teton has already identified a temporary winter reroute over the top of the landslide, and an alternative summer route is being investigated. But a long-term solution is not yet clear.
“Until this thing stops moving,” Oltman said, “we don’t have a good plan.”

February 18, 2018 Alpine, WY Snow Report

February 18, 2018 Alpine, WY Snow Report Rockin' M Ranch
We picked up another couple wet inches here at the Rockin' M overnight and this morning. Jackson Hole ski resort is reporting 12" in the last 24 hours. Looking at our local snotel sites 12" seems to be about right. Both Blind Bull and Willow Creek are over 80" "on the stick".
***Blind Bull Slide update. I got a report from some riders a few days ago. Getting around the Blind Bull slide is fairly easy. It may not be easy for grandma, but the report came from a local who said he got his whole family by it pretty easy. Drop down the hill to the lake and a fairly easy climb back up to the road. Conditions are looking great for this next week. Temps are predicted to stay cool throughout the week with more snow Wednesday. We still have a few of our smaller "couples" cabins available for this week and weekend if anyone is looking for a last minute trip to Alpine.

February 25, 2018 Alpine, WY Snow Report

February 25, 2018 Alpine, WY Snow Report Rockin' M Ranch
We picked up 2-3" of fluffy dry snow here at the cabins in the last few days. The ski resorts and mountains look like they picked up 4-6" of new. A larger storm is in the forecast for tonight.