Snoqualmie Pass

Cold weather, a weak mid-winter sun, and a crusty snow surface all point toward one thing, generally safe avalanche conditions. Unfortunately, these same variables also result in at best challenging, and at worst dangerous travel. Give yourself extra time to deal with the laundry list of travel hazards.

Make sure to pack your warm jackets, sunglasses, and patience on Saturday. Travel in the mountains is pretty tricky at the moment. Don’t be in any rush. Rugged frozen surfaces in the forest and icy, sometimes breakable, slopes in the open could make even the most simple terrain a challenge to navigate. Despite the sunshine, most slopes will struggle to soften at all with the cold temperatures and gentle breeze. Throw in open creeks, random holes, and down limbs and you have the makings of a hard day for even the most skilled mountain traveler. At least the rugged snow conditions will also keep avalanche issues to a minimum. 

While a crust caps most slopes, you may still find relatively soft dry snow in high, steep, shaded terrain. If you’re pushing into some of the more complex and rocky alpine faces, keep an eye out for lingering wind-drifted slabs. The recent snow has bonded well to the underlying 1/10 crust in the past week. Even still, there’s an outside chance of an isolated avalanche in very steep or cliffy terrain. Unfortunately, these slopes also carry incredible consequences. 

With Low Danger, you won’t be surprised that there’s not much of concern in the snowpack. Several travelers, including NWAC forecasters, noted weak snow below the 1/10 crust. Fortunately, you need to saw through the stout crust to help this layer fail. That’s not likely to happen. Instead, our eyes are on the surface and few inches of snow over the crust as we patiently await our next storm.