Mt Hood

Steady additions of snow and more sustained winds will build slabs of increasing size and sensitivity. These may step down to weaker interfaces, particularly where they overly shallower W aspects. Old stubborn hard slabs remain a concern on steep, unsupported slopes in heavily wind-loaded terrain at upper elevations.

Avalanche Burial: At around 12:00 pm on Thursday, February 19th, a group of snowmobilers were riding near the Shoestring Glacier on Mt Saint Helens. On their second pass across a slope, two riders were traveling together when they triggered a large avalanche. Unknown to the first rider, the second was fully buried by the slide. Once realizing their friend was missing, the team quickly initiated an avalanche rescue. They located the buried rider with an avalanche transceiver and a probe strike. When they initially reached his airway, he was purple and not breathing. After several rescue breaths, the rider began breathing on his own and eventually regained consciousness. The buried rider was able to ride out under his own power with no injuries. Avalanche: HS-AM-R2-D2-U, NE, 6000 ft.

While not directly in the Mt Hood zone, the above avalanche incident serves as a reminder of potential weaker layers that are starting to be tested by incoming weather as we move into a stormier pattern.

Forecasters on Pea Gravel Ridge found high quality riding conditions with plenty of dry snow above the crust. Weaknesses above the 2/7 crust and a  thin layer of previously identified preserved stellars were unremarkable in test results. We'll continue to track these potential weaknesses, but are not currently concerned on deeper snow aspects. WSW aspects are a different story. They currently hold around a foot of snow with multiple crusts and surrounding weaknesses. Once a slab forms on these slopes, expect the potential for suprising avalanches.

Around an inch of snow accumulated over the last 24 hours. 4-6" of snow low-density snow has accumulated each day from Monday-Thursday. Accumlations are in the 2 ft range at ski area bases since Valentine's Day. There have been 3 rounds of wind slab formation since 2/15. The most recent major wind event on Wednesday formed above a layer of less wind affected snow, potentially prolonging its life. Wednesday's winds pushed snow down canyons into lower elevation trees and Mt Hood Meadows Patrol noted a density interface down 12-16" in "the Canyon." 

Below the patchwork of wind slabs, you'll likely encounter a thin 2/16 rain crust at lower elevations. An observer at the upper elevations of Ski Bowl (~5000 ft) noted a poor bond to the crust, so it is worth monitoring this interface as snow continues to accumulate and gradually settle into a slab. Ascending into middle elevations, the 2/16 rain crust dissipates and your next crust is likely to be the 2/13 or 2/7 rain crust.

We could use the observations as winter finally makes a return. Let us know what you see by submitting an observation here or on the AvyApp.