Lawinenlagebericht

Mt Hood

Northwest Avalanche Center
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Lawinengefahr

Thu
Hochgebirge
3 · Erheblich
Waldgrenze
2 · Mässig
Unterhalb
Keine Stufe
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Veraltet — dieser Lagebericht ist 9 months ago abgelaufen. Du siehst vergangene Verhältnisse, nicht den aktuellen Bericht.

Kernpunkte

Significant rainfall will maintain dangerous avalanche conditions at upper elevations and continue to wash away our lean middle-elevation snowpack. As you climb into snow-covered terrain above 6000 ft, give steep slopes and large avalanche paths connecting to the upper mountain a wide berth. Wet avalanches can be unpredictable and release without warning. 

Lawinenprobleme

  • Loose Wet

    • Hochgebirge
    • Waldgrenze
    • Unterhalb der Waldgrenze
    Wahrscheinlichkeit
    Likely
    Größe
    1.5–2.5

    Another 3+ inches of rain is forecast for the Mt Hood zone on Tuesday night through Wednesday. This rain will continue to soak the snowpack and maintain the threat of wet avalanches, including very large avalanches that could run off the upper mountain into the upper canyon terrain (White River, Newton, and Heather/Clark Canyons, to name a few). Expect any combo of wet loose, wet slab, cornice shed, and even glide avalanches where smooth rock slabs exist under the lean, early-season snowpack. 

    There’s obviously very little or no snow at trailhead elevations, but expect this wet avalanche problem to become more prevalent as you climb above 6500 ft on steep, snow-covered slopes. Deep boot penetrations and sloppy, wet surfaces are indicators that you can trigger wet avalanches. Poor visibility should also help you plan a more conservative line on the mountain. We have a long season ahead of us, and these gross, wet conditions are certainly not worth threading the needle in. Just consider staying off and well out of the way of steep, avalanche terrain during this period. 

    (12/7/2023)

    An example of wet loose avalanches during the early season. These wet avalanches could come in a range of shapes or sizes, but the consequences will likely be more predictable and dire with all the early season hazards that currently lurk. 

    Photo: Willie Webster

Avalanche Discussion

Well, this has been a very warm and wet storm for the Mt. Hood zone. As of Tuesday evening, weather stations have already recorded nearly 4 inches of water in the last 24 hours. Unfortunately, we may see another 3 inches of rain through Tuesday night and into Wednesday. All this rain, combined with high snow levels, will undoubtedly have a devastating impact on our meager middle-elevation snowpack. 

Upper elevations are a bit more uncertain, though. Fluctuating snow levels have likely kept some precipitation as snow above 8000 ft. However, with rising freezing levels this evening, rain will once again prevail and fall across our upper elevations (and higher).  We had very little upper-elevation snowpack data leading up to this atmospheric river event, so we’re unsure how this rain event will play out. Given the uncertainty and poor weather, it's best to keep your terrain selection simple and let this storm run its course. 

With the warm start to the 25-26 winter season, we have less snowpack information than usual to start daily forecast operations. For zones and elevation bands with less snow than needed for avalanche hazard, we will issue a forecast with No Rating. Anticipated avalanche and weather conditions will still be updated daily. NWAC will issue an avalanche danger rating for a zone when enough snow to produce avalanches has accumulated at middle and upper elevations.

The season is young, the snowpack is shallow,  and observations are limited. You can help us out by submitting a public observation here. 

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