Lawinenlagebericht

Olympics

Northwest Avalanche Center
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Lawinengefahr

Fri
Hochgebirge
4 · Gross
Waldgrenze
4 · Gross
Unterhalb
3 · Erheblich
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Kernpunkte

Heavy snowfall and wind loading will combine to create very dangerous avalanche conditions with the potential for large natural or human-triggered avalanches at middle and upper elevations. Avoid all areas where avalanches can run. Less snowfall in the northern Olympics may reduce the danger slightly at Hurricane Ridge.

Lawinenprobleme

  • Storm Slabs

    • Hochgebirge
    • Waldgrenze
    • Unterhalb der Waldgrenze
    Wahrscheinlichkeit
    Very Likely
    Größe
    1–2

    12-18" of snowfall combined with strong winds will make all open slopes steeper than 35 degrees dangerous. Winds will drift these slabs deeper at middle and upper elevations where natural avalanches are likely and human-triggered avalanches are possible. Avoid all slopes where avalanches can start, stop, or run. Stick to non-avalanche terrain if you find evidence of 1 ft or more of snow in your area. 

    If you're in an area where there is less than 1 ft of snowfall, you can recreate safely on open slopes less than 35 degrees that aren't exposed to large middle and upper-elevation slide paths.

     

    (12/22/2024)

    Strong winds drifted shallow amounts of new snow and formed sharp wind features on Sunday. 

    Photo: NPS Rangers

Avalanche Discussion

This is a major winter storm and shouldn't be taken lightly. The heaviest snowfall with this storm will fall late Wednesday through Thursday morning. A blast of strong winds at the end of the storm could thicken slabs down to mid-slope terrain features. The storm snow overlies a few inches of settled snow (at middle and upper elevations) from 12/22 and 12/23 overlying the the stout solstice crust which exists at almost all elevations.

Note that Hurricane Ridge is not favored by this storm and we are with less snowfall in that area, large avalanches and natural activity may occur mostly at upper elevations. However, small to large storm slabs will be easy to trigger and could fail on top of the solstice crust or at the new/old snow interface. If snowfall amounts are less than 1 ft and you are comfortable assessing the risk, you can engage with slopes less than 35 degree or smaller terrain features.

Thin early-season coverage continues to be an issue, particularly at lower elevations. Open creeks, downed logs, brush, and thin coverage make for slow going.

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