08/10/2026
Trees. Friendly anchors that nail the snowpack in place or a trauma hazard if the slope avalanches? Social media isn’t a great medium for communicating nuance. But let’s try…
As with most answers in the avalanche world the answer is ‘it depends’. We can break it down to tree density and tree species.
Density Rule of thumb. If it’s fun to ski through, then it’s not having much of an anchoring effect and avalanches (especially soft storm slabs) are possible.
A good anchoring effect depends on trees that are rarely present in the terrain we ride. Do dense swaths of evergreen trees anchor the snow well? Absolutely. However, skiable glades are generally open enough that soft slab avalanches can be triggered in them.
Anchoring by species rule of thumb. Conifer trees good - deciduous trees bad. Think of birch forests in Norway or glades of maples in Japan. Very little anchoring effect.
It’s not all bad news. What tree do very well is give us contrast in bad visibility, crucially they help show the angle of slope below us in flat light.
Want to learn more? Join us this November for a free AlpineReady clinic with
Free tickets available from the link on our Instagram page or via the Peak Performance website.
