Boletín de aludes

West Slopes South

Northwest Avalanche Center
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Peligro de aludes

Mon
Alta montaña
2 · Moderado
Límite del bosque
2 · Moderado
Bajo el límite
1 · Débil
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Desactualizado: este boletín caducó 8 months ago. Estás viendo condiciones pasadas, no el boletín vigente.

Lo esencial

New snow and strong winds could create fresh slabs near open, more wind exposed terrain. Fortunately, blowing snow, drifts, and wind lips all point toward the steep slopes you want to avoid. With more snow falling near Mt Saint Helens and Mt Adams, expect larger and potentially more dangerous avalanches.

Problemas de aludes

  • Wind Slabs

    • Alta montaña
    • Límite del bosque
    • Bajo el límite del bosque
    Probabilidad
    Possible
    Tamaño
    1–2

    A fresh batch of wind slabs should start forming Saturday night and continue to grow throughout the day. Some of these slabs could become more than a foot thick and not something you want to tango with. Even though wind slabs are often easier to trigger when they are new, they are also simpler to spot. 

    Don’t overthink it. The blowing snow hitting you in the face is the most obvious clue. It also highlights local wind patterns and shows exactly which slopes and features could be loading. Expect slabs not only right along ridgelines, but also in the tops of chutes, near the base of cliffs, and on exposed mid-slope features. 

    If these slabs are soft, small test slopes often provide reliable feedback on how easy they are to trigger. However, if they are firm or feel hollow,  don’t trust them. This is a particularly nasty version of wind slabs that you want to give a very wide berth. Look for lower angled or more wind sheltered areas to get around this problem.

    (1/3/2026)

    Blowing snow near ridgelines was a good clue wind loaded slopes were near by. 

    Photo: Dallas Glass

Avalanche Discussion

Slowly but surely, temperatures are cooling, and the snowlines are creeping down the hillsides. One more mild day should bring rain to the lower elevations and snow at our middle and upper bands. At this point, a little rain probably won’t deal us any fits. You might be able to push wet, mushy snow in very steep terrain, but probably only with considerable effort.

This storm is poised to bring more precipitation to the southern portion of the zone. On Mt Saint Helens and Mt Adams, there might be enough new snow to develop bigger slides and more dangerous conditions. It may be worth taking a look at the Mt Hood forecast for these locations. 

On Saturday, a few inches of snow already started accumulating above 5500ft. Moderate winds formed fresh slabs, and one observer on Mt Rainier even noted several shallow avalanches. The new snow rests over the rained on snow from the last few days. This is developing a new crust. In someplaces it still soft and punchy, in others hard and supportable. We’re only concerned about the snow above this layer. Below the new crust, the snowpack is strong, warm, and well settled. 

At lower elevations, things are more variable. In some locations, warm temperatures resulted in wet manky snow. In others, an icy crust from 1/1 caps the surfaces. However, in both instances, the result is the same; there’s not much avalanche danger. 

The warm and wet weather this week took its toll on the upper snowpack. Rain reached to at least 7000ft in parts of the zone. Many of the rocks, creeks, and bushes that had just disappeared reemerged. Maybe somewhere near the top of our forecast area (~8000ft) it stayed all snow and colder, but we don’t know for sure. 

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