Lawinenlagebericht

West Slopes South

Northwest Avalanche Center
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Lawinengefahr

Sun
Hochgebirge
2 · Mässig
Waldgrenze
2 · Mässig
Unterhalb
1 · Gering
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Veraltet — dieser Lagebericht ist 7 months ago abgelaufen. Du siehst vergangene Verhältnisse, nicht den aktuellen Bericht.

Kernpunkte

You might trigger an avalanche in the wet, mushy snow on very steep slopes. Even if these slides are small, they could be powerful enough to push you over a cliff or into rocks. Somewhere above the rain-snow line, pockets of unstable wind drifted snow could still exist.

Lawinenprobleme

  • Wind Slabs

    • Hochgebirge
    • Waldgrenze
    • Unterhalb der Waldgrenze
    Wahrscheinlichkeit
    Possible
    Größe
    1–2

    If you travel near the highest part of our forecast area (~8000ft), you might find dry snow (and possibly a lot of it). Strong winds likely formed thick and firm slabs on Friday. Scoured slopes, sharp drifts, and fresh cornices should help you anticipate wind loaded areas. Steer around pillow-like slabs, particularly in very steep, unsupported, or rocky terrain.

    (1/3/2026)

    Scoured features can help you anticipate slopes that could hold fresh wind slabs. 

    Photo: Dallas Glass

  • Loose Wet

    • Hochgebirge
    • Waldgrenze
    • Unterhalb der Waldgrenze
    Wahrscheinlichkeit
    Possible
    Größe
    1–1.5

    Even though the precipitation will be winding down, the wet, punchy snow isn’t going anywhere. At this point in the wet avalanche cycle, you might not see many new rollerballs or fresh natural avalanches, and the snow may not be as unstable as it was when it was raining. However, unless it starts to freeze, it should be suspect. 

    It may be tough to trigger one of these avalanches, but on very steep slopes, once the snow gets rolling, it could carry you wherever it decides to go. Be very leery of terrain above cliffs, rocks, creeks, or other high-consequence terrain traps. Expect these slides to be larger where more snow fell before it transitioned to rain, such as at higher elevations and on the volcanoes. 

    One curveball on Saturday could be the sun. After all the rain, it’s hard to imagine the sun having too much impact. However, it might result in blobs of snow falling off rocks and triggering slides on the slopes below. If you start to see the wet snow becoming more reactive with the sunshine, dial it back, and pay attention to overhead hazards.

    These two skier triggered loose avalanches occurred on Thursday near White Pass. (1/29/2026)

Avalanche Discussion

Seeing fresh snow was a nice reprieve from two weeks of dry weather. Storm totals around the zone ranged from 6-12 inches, with nearly 18 inches reported at 6000ft on Mt Rainier. Sadly, it didn’t last long. Warming temperatures brought rain to near or above 7000ft on Friday. After a drizzly start to Saturday, we should experience a break from the precipitation, even if temperatures remain warm. Clouds should start to break, and sunshine return to most locations. 

At this point, we’re only worried about the snow over the prominent January Drought Interface. This is often a prominent, burly crust. However, that crust might be thin or absent on shaded aspects, particularly further south in the zone. You can easily measure the recent snow by feeling for this layer as you travel. The more recent snow, the larger the potential avalanches. 

It’s been a rough month for the snowpack. Prolonged warm and sunny weather significantly hurt coverage at lower elevations and on sunny slopes. Now a laundry list of exposed and shallowly buried obstacles along with a potentially icy crust below the recent snow, make even simple travel more time consuming and in some cases hazardous. 

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