East Slopes Central

Expect a cool morning with warming temperatures during the day. The February sun may poke out and moisten snow surfaces, this could lead to rollerballs and small wet loose slides in some areas. Travel on steep slopes could be slippery with a frozen crust just beneath the new snow.

You're likely to find 3-5" of new snow over the recent crust at mid and upper elevations. The sun may come out during the day, and it will probably warm the snow surface on slopes facing east to south to west. Keep an eye out for snow becoming moist and sticky during the day. Rollerballs could lead to small wet loose slides on steep enough slopes. Slick crusts, avalanche debris, open creeks, and thin coverage could add challenges to your mountain travel. Make sure to bring appropriate equipment for these conditions. 

Observers have been finding surface hoar over the early February crust, including myself on Tuesday at Blewett Pass. It was difficult to identify, but the feel of slipperyness over the crust beneath a few inches of new snow was a hint that it was there. Upon closer inspection I could find it (see photo below). At this point, there isn't enough snow above this layer to be a problem. However, it'll be worth tracking all the snow that lays above the crust as we go into a drier spell, and prior to the next significant storm whenever that may be.

The avalanche cycle from January 21st through February 1st was impressive and long-lived. We are still looking for old crowns and avalanche debris to understand the full extent of this warm, wet storm. On January 28-30th, many natural and skier-triggered, very large avalanches (D2.5-3) were reported throughout the zone and in neighboring zones. Slides on Big Chiwaukum Mtn and Tumwater Canyon ran to the ground (see photos below). Forecasters at the Holden Mine reported natural wet slab and wet loose avalanches to size D3 on the 27th and 28th. If you find evidence of a large or very large avalanche that we haven't logged in our avalanche observations, take a photo and let us know by submitting a public observation!