Lawinenlagebericht

West Slopes South

Northwest Avalanche Center
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Lawinengefahr

Mon
Hochgebirge
3 · Erheblich
Waldgrenze
2 · Mässig
Unterhalb
2 · Mässig
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Veraltet — dieser Lagebericht ist 3 years ago abgelaufen. Du siehst vergangene Verhältnisse, nicht den aktuellen Bericht.

Kernpunkte

It could take a bit of time for the new snow to heal, especially at higher elevations, in wind-loaded features, and on steeper unsupported slopes. Give these areas space by using more planar terrain away from wind-affected ridges.

Lawinenprobleme

  • Storm Slabs

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

    Natural and human-triggered avalanches were reported on Saturday. Most of these slides were small, but they demonstrate the potential of all this new snow. You could trigger slabs within or at the base of the recent snow. 

    You’re most likely to cause an avalanche at upper elevations, in wind-loaded areas, in rocky unsupported terrain, on convex slopes, and in spots where the sun helps the snow to settle. Take time to look for the features and areas you want to avoid. 

    While small slopes and uptrack tests can help you see how the new snow acts under your weight, they will only give you information uppermost section of the snowpack. You’ll need to stop and dig with your hand or shovel to look at all the snow above the highest prominent crust.

    (1/6/2024)

    This small slope failed with minimal effort when undercut by at traveler. Crystal backcountry, NNW 5900ft

    Photo: Andy Harrington

Avalanche Discussion

We should see a bit of a break in the action Sunday. This could include some blue sky and sunshine! This will probably help the snowpack heal. However, there’s a bit of a question about how the sun will affect the snow. You’ll probably see snow shed from rocks and trees. This could create piles of small rollerballs or maybe trigger a small loose slide. It may even help the new snow settle into a more reactive slab. However, given the time of year and cold air temperatures, the impacts should be minimal. 

Storm totals around the West South on Saturday varied. White Pass only picketd up about 7-10in of snow, while areas near Crystal, Chinook, Paradise, and Mt St Helens received 12-18in. Both professionals and recreationists in the Crystal backcountry reported a few natural slab avalanches and human-triggered slides on a variety of aspects and elevations. While the winds blew snow along ridges, cracking and avalanches existed even on sheltered slopes. 

The upper snowpack continues to hold a variety of crust and potential weak layers. The most prominent are the 12/30 crust and Solstice (12/22) facet/crust matrix. So far, we don’t know of any major avalanches on these layers. However, in the wrong piece of terrain, slides could break down to these older layers producing large avalanches several feet deep. 

The other common themes today were travel conditions are excellent, and this round of snow greatly improved coverage. However, at lower elevations, plenty of obstacles remain. Some are now just hidden under an inviting blanket of snow.

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