2026 SAAW Schedule
This year’s SAAW will take place at the lodge at Hilltop Ski Area. Doors open at 8:30. Click on the speaker’s name for a brief description of their presentation.
9:00-9:10: Welcome, Opening Remarks
9:10-9:25: Latest News from the American Avalanche Association
Meghan McElrone, A3 Member Services Coordinator
Annual report on A3’s current initiatives, including professional development programs, industry standards, and efforts to strengthen collaboration across the broader avalanche community. Jayne will highlight key projects from the past year and what’s ahead for advancing avalanche safety, education, and research in the US.
9:30-9:55: Danger Rating – and Then What? How Backcountry Users Engage with the Forecast
Featured Speaker Kelly McNeil, Eagle Cap Mountain Guides
Avalanche forecasts contain much more than a danger rating—but which parts do recreationists actually read? Drawing on responses from 879 recreational avalanche course completers, this talk reveals four distinct patterns of forecast engagement, from relying on headline information to integrating observations, videos, and other supporting evidence. We’ll explore where users tend to stop reading and what these findings mean for educators and forecasters.
10:00-10:25: Highlights from the 2026 International Snow Science Workshop
Andy Moderow, Alaska Avalanche School
Every two years, practitioners from around the world gather to talk through the latest in avalanche-related science. This year’s program includes cutting edge research on everything from avalanche mechanics through backcountry decision-making and risk communications. This multifaceted presentation will share highlights across a variety of topic areas… and will likely include a good snow pun (or two).
10:25-11:00: Coffee Break
Coffee and snacks provided at Hilltop
11:00-11:25: Small Moments, Stronger Teams: Uplifting Women and Underrepresented Voices in Avalanche Work
Mary Gianotti, CNFAC Forecaster
How can small, everyday interactions help create stronger and more inclusive avalanche teams? Grounded in the belief that everyone has inherent worth and value—and that every voice matters—this presentation centers the experiences of women in avalanche work while exploring practical ways to elevate coworkers’ voices and expertise, strengthen mentorship and psychological safety, and create a culture where women and other historically underrepresented people feel seen, trusted, and empowered to contribute.
11:30-11:55: Geared up, But Ready to Rescue? What the Data Reveal About Motorized Backcountry Riders
Featured Speaker Kelly McNeil, Eagle Cap Mountain Guides
Motorized backcountry riders increasingly carry avalanche rescue equipment and often feel confident in their ability to manage avalanche risk—but does that translate into effective rescue performance? Combining a survey of motorized recreationists with 50 years of fatal motorized avalanche accident data, this talk examines the gap between equipment ownership, confidence, training, and practiced rescue skills. The findings point toward a clear opportunity for the motorized community: moving beyond carrying the gear to developing the competence needed to use it effectively when every minute matters.
12:00-12:25: Investigating avalanche mortality and seasonal terrain exposure of Dall’s sheep in Southcentral AK
Heather Thamm, University of Alaska Fairbanks Institute of Arctic Biology
Avalanches are an important but poorly understood source of mortality for alpine ungulates. This presentation explores what long-term monitoring of Dall’s sheep (Ovis dalli dalli) in Chugach State Park and the Talkeetna Mountains has revealed about avalanche mortality and seasonal patterns of exposure to avalanche terrain, particularly in the context of regional and statewide population declines. Ongoing research seeks to better understand how snow and weather influence avalanche hazard and its consequences for Dall’s sheep.
12:25-1:30: Lunch
Lunch will be provided at Hilltop
1:30-1:55: A Very Large Wet Avalanche Surprised Us, Which Is Funny Because the Same Thing Happened 31 Years Earlier
Tully Hamer and Sean Fallon, Alyeska Ski Patrol
In April of 2024, a very large, unexpected wet slab (R4, D4) necessitated extensive terrain closures and operational impacts at Alyeska Resort. A snowcat grooming at night triggered the avalanche that started in closed, gated terrain and flowed across multiple groomed runs. Despite its magnitude, the avalanche caused no injuries or damage to infrastructure. Looking back to April of 1993, a nearly identical avalanche occurred. In an attempt to make sense of the 2024 event, we compared the snowpack and weather for the 1993 and 2024 avalanches.
2:00-2:25: Storm Tracker – Putting storm events into perspective
Mik Dalpes, CNFAC Director
Storm Tracker is an easy-to-use tool for comparing storms. It compares multi-day increases in snow water equivalent (SWE) measured at Natural Resources Conservation Service (NRCS) SNOTEL stations with increases observed during past storms. This comparison puts current storms into historical context.
2:30-2:55 Making Future Avalanche Hazard Maps More Actionable for Decision-Makers in Alaska
Patrick Ansah, International Arctic Research Center, University of Alaska Fairbanks
How can future avalanche hazard information better support decisions in Alaska? This presentation will share findings from interviews and a statewide survey of Alaska avalanche decision-makers, including audience segmentation results showing differences in how practitioners perceive and anticipate using future avalanche hazard maps.
2:55-3:15: Coffee Break
Coffee and snacks provided at Hilltop
3:15-3:45: 2026/27 Winter Weather Outlook
Carson Jones, Lead Meteorologist and Avalanche Focal, NWS Anchroage; and Kyle Van Peursem, AK Pacific River Forecast Center
Seasonal recaps of the past two seasons based on the jet stream position and seasonal outlook for the super El Nino.
3:45-4:20: AK Avalanche Centers Round Robin
4:10-4:20: Honoring Jill Fredston and Doug Fesler
4:20-4:30: Closing Remarks
5:00: Post-SAAW Social at Cynosure Brewing!
Debrief and catch up with your snow and avalanche community over a fresh beverage at Cynosure Brewing Co. in Anchorage immediately following SAAW.
