Avalanche forecast

East Slopes North

Northwest Avalanche Center
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Avalanche danger

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

Wet avalanches could occur naturally steep on sun-exposed slopes and some could be large and dangerous. Watch for signs of instability like moist snow surfaces, rollerballs, and recent wet avalanches. Be prepared to make your own assessment of conditions as information is very limited.

Avalanche problems

  • Loose Wet

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

    Watch for wet avalanches beginning as surfaces warm. There may not be enough snow available to slide on some low-elevation slopes. Watch for rollerballs or fresh avalanches as indicators that you could trigger more. Use extra caution around unsupported, sagging features like rock slabs, pillows of snow, and cornices. These features can break without warning and could result in deeper and larger avalanches. Limit your exposure to overhead cornices. When traveling near them on ridges, give cornices plenty of space as they can break further back than anticipated. You can limit your exposure by moving to more shaded aspects and lower-angled slopes. 

    (4/4/2023) Wet Loose debris in Trout Creek area Photo: Willie Webster

Avalanche Discussion

Access in the East North zone is difficult and observations are sparse. We have significant uncertainty in the forecast. Be prepared to make your own assessment.  If you're out in the mountains, submit an observation and let us know what you see.  

At upper elevations, there's a chance for lingering instability in wind-drifted slabs of snow. Information is very limited and we don't have a great handle on whether or not you could still trigger wind slab avalanches. Watch for cracks shooting through the snow as a sign of the danger.

WSDOT highway and avalanche crews have been working to clear Hwy 20 Washington Pass. On Thursday, they reported a few large to very large natural wet avalanches on southerly aspects above Hwy 20 on Delancey ridge and in the Cutthroat avalanche paths between Cutthroat Lake rd and the Hairpin  On Wednesday, they reported about 2" of snow from the past 24 hours resting on a firm, frozen crust. A decent cycle of natural wet loose and wet slab avalanches, up to D1.5, occurred with the last storm between 4/9-10.  Some steep, unsupported rock faces released small glide avalanches. A deeper crown was reported in Willow Creek, NE around 7900ft near the top of Kangaroo Ridge. This natural slab avalanche may have been dry and likely resulted from wind loading during the storm.

On Tuesday, 4/4, Willie Webster took an aerial tour of the zone and produced remarkable images of the current snow cover and recent avalanche activity. Notable were a couple of older avalanches, including a very large natural slab avalanche on a NNE aspect of Silverstar Mtn and a natural glide avalanche on Hinkhouse Peak. On March 30th, Willie reported large debris piles on Harts Pass. The road was melting out quickly near Deadhorse Pt. He found a mix of sun crusts on the surface, though higher elevations looked to hold a cold, layered snowpack. 

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