Lawinenlagebericht

Stevens Pass

Mar 19 – 20, 2020Northwest Avalanche Center
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Archiviert · abgelaufen 7 years ago

Lawinengefahr

Sat
Hochgebirge
2 · Mässig
Waldgrenze
2 · Mässig
Unterhalb
1 · Gering
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Kernpunkte

Wet loose avalanche activity is expected to continue Friday with another round of strong sunshine and warm temperatures. Steer around slopes greater than 35 degrees with wet and weak snow surfaces, and give cornice formations a wide berth.

Lawinenprobleme

  • Cornices

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

    Cornices are large and may begin to fail naturally with strong sun and warming temperatures at upper elevations. Look for these features and aim to avoid their potential runout. Large cornice collapses could trigger surprising slab avalanches below.

    You may still be able to trigger wind slab avalanches in shaded, upper elevation terrain, especially in the eastern edge of the zone where more snow fell last weekend. Steer around obviously loaded slopes over 35 degrees where you see deeper drifts and pillows of snow. Avoid typical trigger points like steep slopes below cliff bands and unsupported slopes. Watch for shooting cracks or whumphing collapses as indicators that you could trigger avalanches on nearby steep slopes.

  • Loose Wet

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

    We are several days into a prolonged loose wet cycle that has been slow to run its course. There hasn’t been a major “flush” yet where numerous avalanches occur. Instead, each day, several more natural small (and a few large) loose wet avalanches appear. The diurnal pattern of cool nights and warm sunny days will repeat itself again, and another round of loose wet avalanches is expected Friday. Snow surfaces should experience a solid overnight freeze, and the loose wet hazard will be limited early in the day. Anticipate conditions to change quickly as sunshine and warm temperatures cause snow surfaces to become wet and weak on solar aspects. If you find unconsolidated snow surfaces and see roller balls and pinwheels, it’s time to seek out slightly firmer slopes on other aspects. As you plan your day, consider the slopes you’ll need to cross to return to your car and how they may change in the heat of the afternoon. 

    The snowpack has not transitioned to a spring-time state and several cold layers and crusts still exist. As the warm weather drags on, you could see water percolating to these layers allowing for larger slab or glide avalanches. Be leery of large complex sunny terrain during the hottest parts of the day.

Snowpack Discussion

March 19, 2020 (The regional synopsis is updated every Thursday @ 6 pm)

This week brought a whirlwind of change to our community, the mountains, and the snowpack. It’s mind-boggling to think of how everything changed in just a few short days. Last weekend, a strong winter storm brought frigid temperatures and fluffy powder to many mountain locations. While the calendar read March, conditions felt more like mid-winter. The hands-down winner during this storm was Mission Ridge and the surrounding mountains. As the skies cleared, sunshine and warm temperatures settled into the northwest. Now we’re in the midst of a prolonged spring-like pattern as the snowpack slowly transitions. The biggest change this week may be the impact of the Coronavirus on our community, local mountain operations, and backcountry travel. We continue to work through and adapt to all of these changes in our daily lives as we mark the first official day of spring. 

Wenatchees for the Win

We all know the Wenatchee mountains can receive serious dumps of snow, but this season conditions had been fairly dry. Prior to this past week, Snotel sites and weather stations in the Wenatchees reported only about 65% of average snow depth for the season. A strong low-pressure system began impacting the Pacific Northwest last Friday. However this storm did not follow the usual storm track, it meandered south off the coast, spinning moisture around its center, and sending snow into the Cascades from the SE. When moisture wraps around and approaches our mountains from this direction, it can pack quite a punch along the eastern slopes of the Cascades and in particular the Wenatchees. Early Friday morning, Mission Ridge entered a near 48hr stretch of continuous snowfall. A secondary impact of this low-pressure system was an influx of cold Canadian air which dropped snow levels to near sea level for nearly all locations. The cold air mass combined with the unusual storm track led to substantial accumulations of light fluffy snow; Mission Ridge quickly stacked up over 2ft of very light powder. This new snow and strong winds produced some of the spiciest avalanche conditions for this season in the East Central zone. Numerous natural and human triggered avalanches occurred during and following the storm, including some remotely triggered slides.

Skier triggered avalanche on the Diamond Head in the Wenatchee Mountains. NW, 5200’ 3/14 Photo: Adam Butterfield. 

Other locations in the region only added a few inches to their snow totals for the season. The position of the storm only brought dribs and drabs to the mountains from about Hwy 2 and south. A few standouts further south managed to ring out around a foot (Mt St Helens, White Pass, and Paradise). Strong easterly winds in most areas significantly redistributed the new snow and resulted in reports of numerous natural and human triggered slab avalanches Saturday and Sunday. 

Natural wind slab avalanche on Mt St Helens. W 5500’ 3/14: Photo Nate Berry 

Spring has Sprung

Thursday the 19th ushered in the first official day of spring. All winter, we’ve seen storms creating sometimes unique and occasionally similar snowpacks and avalanche conditions for each of our forecast zones. Following the storm last weekend, a sunny and warm springtime pattern took hold of the region. As it did so, it brought with it a prolonged gradual warm-up and loose wet avalanche cycle. Consequently, differences formerly found in each region slowly resolved as the mountains transitioned into spring. 

A natural loose wet avalanche near Washington Pass, Cutthroat Peak. 3/17. Photo: Gus Goldman

Two items still stand out about this spring transition. 1: the snowpack has not fully moved into a spring-like state. You can still find pronounced cold dry layers and firm icy crust in many areas. 2: We have not seen a spring “shed” cycle yet, where several large natural avalanches occur as the snowpack adjusts to percolating water and warmer temperatures. Forecasting spring shed cycles can be difficult, and it's still unclear when or even if a larger natural wet cycle will occur. 

You can continue to support your community-based avalanche center by submitting observations. 

Stay safe, stay healthy, and thank you for all your support. 

Dallas Glass

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