Avalanche forecast

West Slopes South

Northwest Avalanche Center
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Avalanche danger

Sun
Alpine
2 · Moderate
Treeline
2 · Moderate
Below
2 · Moderate
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Highlights

Large wet avalanches will still be possible on Saturday, despite the cold temperatures and firming surfaces. There's a chance you could trigger one underfoot, but you could also get hit by snow falling off steep slopes and rocks overhead. Limit your time traveling on or beneath steep slopes and rocky terrain.

Avalanche problems

  • Wet Slabs

    • Alpine
    • Treeline
    • Below treeline
    Likelihood
    Possible
    Size
    1.5–2.5

    Though less likely than previous days, wet avalanches are still possible on Saturday. There has been a ton of rain over the past week, allowing water to penetrate and collect deep into the snowpack. If you encounter a wet avalanche on Saturday, it might not be your standard, small point-release wet loose avalanche. Instead, we're talking about scary, large, wet slab avalanches that fail deep into the snowpack. 

    These types of slides are notoriously hard to predict when and where they will occur, and using the usual small slope tests won't properly assess the problem. Instead, your best tool will be choosing the proper terrain and limiting your exposure. Start in smaller terrain, and work your way up to steep slopes. Look for recent avalanche activity, deep cracks in the snow, or deep punchy surfaces as reasons to stick to lower-angle terrain. On your travels, limit your time hanging beneath steep slopes or rocky features, where snow could fall on top of you.

    (3/18/2026)

    A drone shot of natural, wet slab avalanches in the Crystal Mountain area.  These large, unpredictable slides could travel far distances and gouge into last week's storm snow.

    Photo: Crystal Mountain Pro Patrol

Avalanche Discussion

Friday brought another round of rain and wind to the West South zone, with the bulk of the precipitation focused around the Paradise area. Paradise recorded 2.3 inches of water since 5 PM Thursday, while Crystal Mountain recorded 0.45 inches. Ridgeline winds were consistently moderate to strong, with White Pass recording gusts into the 60s mph.

It was a quiet day across the zone, with no new reported avalanche activity. The most recent avalanches were reported at Crystal Mountain, including a few large wet slabs that released naturally on Wednesday and others triggered by explosives on Thursday. A few long-running wet avalanches were also observed in the White Pass backcountry.

Temperatures are expected to cool Friday night into Saturday, bringing snow levels back down to low elevations. Don't expect much for snowfall down low, but the uppermost elevations of the volcanoes could see a few fresh inches of snow. The current snow surfaces are beat up, wet, and mushy. With cold temperatures ahead, you can plan on these surfaces turning firm and difficult to travel on. If you're chasing out new snow up at upper elevations, expect dust on crust conditions. Most other places may just be a crust.

With the firm surfaces, take your time as you travel. Conditions like this can be brutal, and it doesn't take much to fall and get hurt.

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