HAILEY, Idaho (KLIX) – Be warned if you’ve thought about going into the higher elevations of the Sawtooth Mountains anytime soon: the danger of triggering an avalanche is considerable, according to the Sawtooth Avalanche Center.

“Avalanche conditions remain scary, especially at upper elevations,” the center said on Thursday morning. It said snowfall and wind is expected to increase the avalanche danger Thursday night into Friday morning, and cautions people that if they are in the mountains when the storm hits to avoid all avalanche terrain, “including flat or gentle terrain below large avalanche paths.”

You could trigger very large, wide avalanches, even from the sides or from flat ground below steep slopes. Slopes where any snow drifts formed in the past couple days are the most dangerous; avoid wind-loaded avalanche terrain.

A nearly mile-long, naturally-released avalanche happened Wednesday afternoon on Galena Peak, according to the avalanche experts, noting it ran for more than 2,000 vertical feet.

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