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Avalanche Forecast

Archived

Apr 11th, 2014–Apr 12th, 2014

Alpine
Natural avalanches unlikely, human triggered possible.
Treeline
Natural avalanches unlikely, human triggered possible.
Below Treeline
Natural avalanches unlikely, human triggered possible.
Alpine
Natural avalanches unlikely, human triggered possible.
Treeline
Natural avalanches unlikely, human triggered possible.
Below Treeline
Natural avalanches unlikely, human triggered possible.

Regions

Stevens Pass.

Watch for wet loose concerns mainly during the afternoon and on steeper solar slopes.  

Detailed Forecast

 

The most extensive avalanche concern will be wet snow avalanches predominately on solar slopes Saturday. The avalanche danger may be locally lower in the north Cascades due to cooler temperatures and more cloud cover.  Watch for wet surface snow deeper than a few inches, roller balls in surface snow and small natural wet loose releases that usually precede more major wet loose snow avalanches. Avoid terrain traps where a small but powerful wet loose avalanche could have unintended consequences.

Cornices will be listed as a secondary concern due to the recent failures, but they should be less likely to fail Saturday.  However, continue safe travel techniques by avoiding walking onto or below cornices - many have grown large recently. Cornices often break back further from the edge than expected and can trigger avalanches on the slopes below.

Lingering shallow wind slab above tree line is not expected to be a widespread concern at this time. 

Snowpack Discussion

A pair of fronts crossed the Northwest a week ago Friday and later Saturday.  Snowfall amounts from these systems ranged from about 5 to 25 inches at NWAC stations at higher elevations near and west of the crest. Warm temperatures were seen Sunday and especially Monday, causing avalanches in the recent storm snow with a few triggered by cornice failures.

Crystal mountain pro patrol reported late Monday afternoon a natural point release that became a large wet avalanche that gouged down several feet to older snow layers from past storm cycles near the Bear Pits ski run. Crystal patrol found similar results with explosives Tuesday morning while the upper snowpack was still wet. The DOT crew at Chinook Pass reported widespread ski triggered wet loose avalanches on solar slopes Tuesday.

A weaker front moved through the PNW Tuesday afternoon and night with a colder air mass following Tuesday night. About .50 to.75 inches of rain fell at NWAC stations near and west of the crest with perhaps 2-8 inches of snow above treeline.  Despite the cooling Tuesday night, NWAC observer Tom Curtis still found the upper 25 cm of snow on a NE aspect near treeline at White Pass to be wet and available for entrainment on Wednesday (see photo).  Explosive control work Wednesday by the WSDOT crew working on Chinook Pass triggered large cornice failures on a east aspect that gouged down into wet snow a few feet. 

Several nights of freezing temperatures Wednesday through Friday allowed a better refreeze of the surface snow with no new avalanches reported Thursday or Friday.  

Large roller balls after triggering cornice collapse, White Pass, T. Curtis, 4-09-14

Problems

Loose Wet

Loose Wet avalanches are the release of wet unconsolidated snow or slush. These avalanches typically occur within layers of wet snow near the surface of the snowpack, but they may quickly gouge into lower snowpack layers. Like Loose Dry Avalanches, they start at a point and entrain snow as they move downhill, forming a fan-shaped avalanche. Other names for loose-wet avalanches include point-release avalanches or sluffs. Loose Wet avalanches can trigger slab avalanches that break into deeper snow layers.

Cornices

Cornice Fall is the release of an overhanging mass of snow that forms as the wind moves snow over a sharp terrain feature, such as a ridge, and deposits snow on the downwind (leeward) side. Cornices range in size from small wind drifts of soft snow to large overhangs of hard snow that are 30 feet (10 meters) or taller. They can break off the terrain suddenly and pull back onto the ridge top and catch people by surprise even on the flat ground above the slope. Even small cornices can have enough mass to be destructive and deadly. Cornice Fall can entrain loose surface snow or trigger slab avalanches.