Avalanche forecast

Mt Hood

Northwest Avalanche Center
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Avalanche danger

Tue
Alpine
2 · Moderate
Treeline
2 · Moderate
Below
1 · Low
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Highlights

Adjust your mindset back to winter mode as snow and wind form slabs that increase in reactivity and size with elevation and time. Wind-textured snow, blowing snow,  and fresh cornices all serve as reminders to avoid wind-loaded slopes steeper than 35 degrees. Slabs may run on Sunday's crust, so use small test slopes to check the bond at the interface as you ascend.

Avalanche problems

  • Wind Slabs

    • Alpine
    • Treeline
    • Below treeline
    Likelihood
    Possible
    Size
    1–1.5

    We're expecting 4-7" of snow to fall on Mt Hood with WSW winds increasing into the moderate range late Sunday night into Monday. Slabs will build throughout the day and will be large enough to take you for a ride in wind-loaded avalanche start zones. At the start of the day, slabs may be small and more limited to more isolated pockets of slab 6" or deeper sitting on the 3/19 crust. However, as snow continues to fall and redistribute throughout the day, expect the extent of 6" wind deposits to become more continues in the lee of ridgelines, below exposed rollovers in the terrain, and may develop in cross-loaded drainages. Visibility may be limited on Monday, so use a mix of visual and textural clues to assess the slab formation. Blowing snow, firm or punchy snow layers above the crust, or textured surfaces all point to 

    (3/16/2023)

    Example: Wind-textured snow beneath a wind-loaded ridgeline. If you see or feel something similar, avoid the temptation to move into steeper terrain.

    Photo: Robert Hahn

Avalanche Discussion

Although we enjoyed a stretch of dry and mild weather, we're heading slowly back toward winter with the arrival of a modest weather system. Mild and sunny weather on Saturday formed crusts on most aspects and elevations. Light snowfall started Sunday afternoon, burying crusts that formed on most elevations and aspects due to Saturday's sunny, mild weather. The snow likely bonded well near and below treeline, but colder snow falling above treeline may not bond as well. Expect somewhat more reactive slabs at these upper elevations on Monday.

On Friday, forecaster Joe Dellaporta found widespread firm, wind-textured snow (chalky snow, sastrugi) above treeline on the south side of the mountain.  While a SE breeze was drifting small amounts of new snow at upper elevations, older wind slabs formed earlier in the week were unlikely to trigger and no new avalanches were observed.  These slabs on atypical aspects should be capped by the 3/19 crust and are not expected to be a problem within NWAC forecast elevations moving forward. With the switch to E-SE winds midweek through Sunday morning, cornices have been trimmed back and are not particularly large in many areas.  

If you get out let us know what you see by submitting an observation!

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