Avalanche forecast

East 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

Another sunny, warm afternoon is in store for Saturday afternoon, with the potential for a poor overnight refreeze of snow surfaces. Wet avalanches will be possible by the afternoon and more likely on sunny slopes. With spring warmups, the potential for cornice falls and surprising avalanches is possible, so consider this additional uncertainty when choosing terrain. 

Avalanche problems

  • Loose Wet

    • Alpine
    • Treeline
    • Below treeline
    Likelihood
    Possible
    Size
    1–2

    Temperatures will notch up again tomorrow, and cloud cover overnight may limit the extent of an overnight refreeze. Morning clouds will give way to clear skies, and the strong March sun will make the snow surface wet and heavy on sunny slopes. Recent sunny days and cold nights mean that the sun will have to melt recently formed crusts before wet loose avalanches really start to move. Still, by Saturday afternoon, these wet loose avalanches are likely to be larger and easier to trigger than on Friday. These avalanches tend to start from a single point and fan out, entraining more snow as they move downhill. Steep cliffs, rocky terrain, and tree bombs often initiate these slides, but you can also trigger them by skiing in steep terrain. Rollerballs, pinwheels, and sticky snow are all signs that the likelihood of wet loose avalanches is increasing. With temperatures potentially hitting 40 degrees at lower elevations, you could even see wet snow begin to slide on shady slopes. These avalanches may be more predictable than slab avalanches, but they carry a lot of mass and can push you into terrain traps or over cliffs.Along with wet loose avalanches, large cornices may begin to fail with the warming temperatures. When they fail, these large overhanging blocks of snow are hazards on their own but pack enough weight that they could also trigger slab avalanches on the slopes below. 

    (11/24/2022)

    Rollerballs like this are often indicators telling you the snow surface is getting weak. 

    Photo: Robert Hahn

Avalanche Discussion

Due to recent warm temperatures, you’ll likely find variable travel below 5000’. However, you may still find some good riding conditions in more sheltered areas on the north side of the compass. 

Last Sunday, NWAC forecaster Joe Dellaporta traveled to the Gold Hill Ridge area in the western part of the East South. They observed a deep snowpack, stubborn wind slabs, and large cornices. You can check out the full observation here. 

In neighboring East Central, as the skies cleared on Saturday, observers saw some very large crowns from natural avalanches above 7000ft on northern aspects in alpine terrain. We are uncertain about the layer these slides ran on. However, they appear to be primarily in wind-loaded, high-elevation, exposed terrain. Older crust layers may be the culprit, so consider the consequences of a cornice fall triggering a very large avalanche at these higher elevations. 

If you get out into the mountains of the East South, let us know what you see by submitting an observation!

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