East Slopes South

During periods of intense sunshine, it could become possible to trigger a small wet snow avalanche in areas immediately adjacent to the Cascade Crest. The greater hazards to contend with throughout the day and the zone are patchy snow coverage, open creeks, and exposed rocks. 

Wednesday was just about as sunny as it can get, and the wind was so calm that even faithfully windy places like Mission Ridge in the nearby East Central zone recorded 0 mph wind speeds. While temperatures certainly rose, they didn't skyrocket into the 40s and 50s (F) as we've seen at numerous points this year. An NWAC Forecaster traveling just over the border in the West South zone remarked that it actually felt cold standing in the shade. Anticipate Thursday to be similarly calm and warm, except for occasional mid to high cloud cover.

A wet loose problem isn't expected to "turn on" on Thursday for a few reasons. First, Wednesday night will be clear, allowing for radiational cooling and surface crust formation. These crusts would have to break down before the snowpack could begin to weaken. Second, Thursday will be day 3 of warmth and sunshine, so it's likely that any wet loose problem present in the zone this week has already run its course. And third, the expected thin cloud cover should be just enough to prevent significant warming of the snowpack.

That being said, if you are traveling around areas on the western side of the zone that received new snow last weekend and the sun is blazing, check for signs of instability before dropping in. Sticky surfaces that you're sinking into, and chunks of moist snow falling from cliff bands or your own equipment, indicate the snowpack is heating up. Wet loose snow will be running on the 02/07 interface, which presents as a crust in most places.

Any wind slabs that formed over the 02/07 interface are unlikely. But take a moment to check for lingering instability if you're stepping into extreme high elevation terrain. The 02/07 interface could be quite a slick bed surface for a slab of wind loaded snow.

Low elevation terrain, southerly slopes, and areas east of Darland Mountain have painfully thin coverage. There are a lot of exposed hazards in the terrain that you don't normally see at this point in the winter. These include rocks, random holes, creeks, and downed logs. Where there’s snow, it may be wet and mushy, icy, or have breakable crusts. This creates its own host of travel hazards. Give yourself extra time and precaution to manage these “early season” conditions.

Observations from this zone would be very valuable — please share what you’re seeing if you're getting out.