Stevens Pass

Expect another cool, quiet day with partly cloudy skies. Challenging travel on firm, icy snow is a greater concern than avalanches in many locations. Use caution in steep terrain where a slip or small amount of sluffing snow could lead to an uncontrolled fall. 

Saturday will be another cool day with more clouds in the morning and at the Cascade crest, and clearing to the east and in the afternoon. In general, there's little concern for avalanches. If you venture into very steep, extreme terrain like rocky chutes or corniced ridges, there's a chance that you could trigger overhung cornices or small chunks of wind-drifted snow. In steep, high consequence terrain, consider that even small amounts of moving snow could push you into an uncontrolled fall.

Snow and avalanche conditions haven't changed much since mid-week. Friday brought more sun than clouds, but cool temperatures kept surface crusts firm even on the most sun-exposed slopes. On Thursday, the 16th, strong wind accompanied, cold temperatures and a skiff of new snow at the top of Stevens Pass. There was minimal snow available to drift. On the 14th and 15th, small wet avalanches were reported on steep southerly slopes with warm temperatures and sun. The crusts that now adorn many slopes resulted from these warm days.

On January 10-11th, 8-9" of snow and strong westerly winds brought very reactive avalanche conditions. On shaded slopes, you can still find this recent snow resting on a thin 1/10 interface above a crust from early January. Observers have reported surface hoar on the current surface of many slopes.

Let us know what you see when you're in the mountains by submitting an observation.