Southeast Mountains

Spring weather delivers a variety of avalanche problems to manage.  Recent snow and wind formed drifts on leeward terrain features at upper elevations, typically on the eastern half of the compass.  There is a possibility, in the northern half of the compass, of triggering avalanches that break on deeper, older, weak layers.  You can reduce risk by steering clear of wind-drifted slopes and choosing more conservative terrain on northerly aspects to reduce the chances of a surprise large avalanche on older, deep, weak layers. 

Finally, warm temperatures will wet the new snow on the southern side of the compass and create a loose hazard.  Expect small natural avalanche activity throughout the day.  Use defensive sluff management techniques in steep terrain.

Expect to encounter a dynamic mix of conditions that require different travel techniques.  Temperatures will jump notably on Sunday.  Expect loose avalanche activity to increase over Saturday.  Natural avalanches could be common today on steep sunny terrain, particularly on rocky terrain and features protected from the cooling effects of the wind.  If you're climbing steep terrain with overhead hazards, consider thoughtful uptracks so you don't get hit by a natural loose avalanche. 

Slab avalanche issues persist on the northern side of the compass and possibly on some high-elevation southerly terrain that experienced only minor warmth on Saturday.  Forecasters frequently produced shooting cracks and triggered a few small wind slabs near treeline on Cascade Mountain during the storm on Friday, but I would expect this sensitivity to have decreased.  The most concerning places to trigger a recent drift are where slabs formed above faceted weak layers on shady aspects.  Thankfully, slabs are generally small, and you should be able to steer around these. 

The trickier part of today's hazard comes from weak layers deeper in the snowpack, the persistent slab problem.  In the Northwest Mountains, the probability of triggering an avalanche on deeper weak layers continues to decrease due to thick, dense slabs and improving strength in weak layers.  Although the likelihood continues to drop, the consequences remain severe if you find the wrong spot and release a dangerous avalanche.  In the Southeast Mountains, the slabs are generally thinner, and weak layers have shown less improvement.  Additionally, the rain event on Wednesday, 2/25, had less impact on the snowpack in some parts of the Southeast Mountains.  This observation from Zach in upper Cement Creek provides evidence of increased sensitivity in persistent weak layers.  Rain crusts were much thinner in this area and added less strength to the snowpack than commonly found in the Northwest Mountains.  Some uncertainty exists about the impact of this storm's water weight on deeper weak layers.  The simplest solution is to select more conservative terrain for aspects and elevations highlighted by the persistent slab rose.