Current avalanche conditions in western Wyoming are extremely high, and one local rider wants to warn others just how scary the back country can be.  Even in good conditions.

Kayd Burton submitted this video to SVI Media in hopes of bringing awareness to avalanche risks.  Burton is not the rider in the avalanche, nor was he there when it occurred.  The video was originally posted by CW Sledder.

The video was taken on January 31, 2019 near Afton, Wyoming.  It shows one rider following another on a side hill as the snow gives way in an avalanche.  The trailing snowmobile, which was filming, was able to ride on top of the avalanche initially, but was luckily only partially buried as the slide concluded.  All of the riders escaped unharmed.

The video states that the riders checked the avalanche reports the morning of the ride and “all conditions were green.”  All the riders were prepared with avalanche safety gear and were seasoned riders.  But as the day went on and the snow warmed in the sun, it became soft and the riders became complacent.  The slide occurred in an area that had been ridden previously in the day.

The latest avalanche reports can be found on the Bridger-Teton Avalanche Center’s website.  Avalanche danger for today, Feb. 27, is HIGH for all elevations.

Wyoming Avalanche 2019 from CWSledder on Vimeo.