Mt Hood

An extended period of above-freezing temperatures combined with light rainfall on Monday could result in very isolated glide avalanches or small wet avalanches. Reduce your overhead hazard if crusts break down or heavier rain falls. If you travel above 8000 ft, monitor for and steer around drifts of snow 6" or deeper.

Temperatures have been near or above freezing at resort elevations since last Tuesday. Over the last 24 hours, temperatures have been predominantly in the 40s, only briefly dropping into the upper 30s overnight. Sunday night should be similar. The widespread 1"+ thick crusts on Mt Hood softened on the aspects most impacted by direct sunshine on Saturday. Cloud cover and rainfall may soften the crust's surface but may do little to penetrate any dry snow beneath the crust. However, as long as rain and warm temperatures remain present, any snow perched on steep snow could fall unexpectedly. It would be wise to limit your overhead hazard.

We expect a very subtle cooling trend over the next 24 hours.  Periods of generally light snow start falling above 9000 ft in the early morning hours on Monday and snow levels should drop to around 8000 ft during the afternoon. At these highest elevations, these slabs could sit on rime crust or potentially older dry snow on N aspects. We have limited information about the snowpacks in these locations, so factor that extra uncertainty into your plans with careful snowpack evaluation.

On much of the upper mountain, the main story has been the firm, thick, and in some places icy surface crust.  A stout rain crust resides on the surface below 7300 ft with a rime crust widespread on the south aspects above this elevation. A public observation from the north side of the mountain on Thursday found something we haven't heard much about lately; dry snow above 7300' on an aspect that was more sheltered from the extreme winds during the last atmospheric river event. A continuation of the pleasant weather may entice you to push higher on the mountain this weekend,  but be ready for technical mountain travel at upper elevations.  Observers ( observation here)  have been reporting rockhard and variable surface conditions in most areas. If you plan to travel at these elevations, be sure to pack the 'sharps kit,' including an ice axe and crampons to help you travel more efficiently and, most importantly, reduce the chance of a long sliding fall. Travel on snow at lower elevations is challenging due to low snow and discontinuous snow cover. 

Observers on the south side of the mountain found that mild temperatures and filtered sun finally softened up the crust on Friday. However, despite Saturday's temperatures rising to 40-50F at 5500-6500 ft, this softening didn't extend above 8000 ft due to moderate winds. 

On Wednesday, forecaster Joe Dellaporta traveled with our new intern observer Koby Yudkin in the Vista Ridge area. They found better travel conditions than what was initially anticipated at lower and middle elevations and bulletproof conditions above treeline. You can read the full observation here. 

If you get up on the mountain, let us know what you see by submitting a public observation.