Lawinenlagebericht

Northern Wallowas

Wallowa Avalanche Center
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Lawinengefahr

Hochgebirge
2 · Mässig
Waldgrenze
1 · Gering
Unterhalb
1 · Gering
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Veraltet — dieser Lagebericht ist 8 months ago abgelaufen. Du siehst vergangene Verhältnisse, nicht den aktuellen Bericht.

Kernpunkte

Generally stable avalanche conditions exist on all aspects below 8,000'.  Due to a lack of information above 8000', and being 48 hours out from the last storm, upper elevations are Moderate danger.

Today would be an excellent day to cautiously explore in the Alpine and grow our collective knowledge. If you see suspiciously smooth or rippled surfaces, or feel harder snow that supports your equipment, move yourself to lower angle terrain.  

Avalanche danger has been rated Low, below treeline, due to a lack of snow.  

This forecast is sponsored by Wallowa County Gamblers Snowmobile Club of Enterpise, OR.  

Lawinenprobleme

  • Wind Slabs

    • Hochgebirge
    • Waldgrenze
    • Unterhalb der Waldgrenze
    Wahrscheinlichkeit
    Unlikely
    Größe
    1–1.5

    Wind slabs are a new snow problem and decrease in reactivity over time, but you can certainly still trigger them two days after a wind event/storm.  Additionally, there is uncertainty about the bond with the 12/18 lower crust (now down ~1-3') and the 12/26 upper crust (3-12" down).  Using a probe to feel for them or digging improves our collective knowledge.  

    Look for blowing snow, shooting cracks, or stiff/styrofoamy snow that is suddenly supportable to your skis or machine.  These catch both recreational and professional users since they are on one slope and not the next.  Hand shears are a good tool to check: Is it a slab or loose snow?  

Avalanche Discussion

Conditions: 4-10" of new snow from Friday sits over a stout 2-3" crust that got buried on 12/26.  This new snow is settling into more of a slab/more supportive and is likely gaining strength after 2 days.  Low elevation access remains bony, but above 6000', riding conditions are worthy.  Enjoy the sun.  

N Wallowas:   

  • Pretty good, creamy ski quality reported on 12/26 in N Wallowas.  Blowing snow and a snow height up to 185cm in a wind-loaded spot.  
  • Northern Wallowas 12/20 Forecaster Caleb and his partner found red flags such as collapsing/whoomphing and unstable results in tests (propagation) around the lower 12/18 crust sandwich.

S Wallowas:  

  • Norway - less wind effect than expected, at least up to 7800'.  No signs of instability and good soft skiing in sheltered areas.  
  • Clear Creek snowmobile day 12/26- Near 5000', I found many trees across the road, all passable.  Snow height increases rapidly above 5000'.

 New resources for 2025/2026

  • Fresh blog post on 12/22: Early season mindset
  • Avy App. It can save the forecast for offline use and store field observations that upload automatically when back in service. 

Avalanche Courses:  The WAC provides avalanche education specifically for both backcountry skiers and snowmobilers.  Check out all of our courses here.  

  • Motorized Companion Rescue Jan. 16 Catherine Creek
  • Motorized Level 1 Course Jan 17-18 Catherine Creek
  • Motorized Level 2 Course Jan 24-25 Halfway
  • Motorized Level 1 Refresher Feb 7 Catherine Creek
  • Women's Only Snowmobile Clinic Feb 28-March 1 Catherine Creek

Observations: 

 Submit an observation here.  Let's paint this picture together.   An observation can be just that- a picture.  It doesn't have to use any technical wording or snow nerd acronyms.  Just explain where you went and what you saw (or if you did not see avalanches).   Submitting observations through the Avy App has made it incredibly easy to help paint the picture for forecasters and recreational users.  

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