Avalanche forecast

Olympics

Northwest Avalanche Center
View on map

Avalanche danger

Sun
Alpine
3 · Considerable
Treeline
2 · Moderate
Below
1 · Low
Open full map
Out of date — this forecast expired 2 years ago. You’re viewing past conditions, not the current bulletin.

Highlights

Strong winds and continued snowfall will make for stormy conditions in the Olympics on Saturday. You could trigger an avalanche in freshly drifted snow well below ridgelines and near cliffs. With such poor visibility, scoured slopes may give you the only obvious choice to avoid this hazard. 

Avalanche problems

  • Wind Slabs

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

    While this storm should bring significant snow to the Olympics, it’s the winds that are really impressive. Expect freshly drifted slabs in a variety of locations. Given the strong and gusty nature of this event, you could see wind transported snow in some odd places. This includes along the sides of mid-slope gullies, exposed features well off of ridges, and in rocky terrain. Actively blowing snow should help emphasize the hazard, but it might be hard to tell exactly where it’s landing. Firm, deeper drifts on steep slopes are the spots you want to avoid. Use your eyes to hunt for this hazard. Don’t trust a wind-loaded pocket during the storm. These slides could be larger and more dangerous at upper elevations and in areas of the zone that receive more snow.

    (12/13/2024)

    Is it windy? Don't overlook the obvious. Blowing snow should mean wind slabs until proven otherwise. 

    Photo: ONP Rangers

Avalanche Discussion

A significant winter storm continues to wallop the Olympics. On Friday, precipitation primarily favored the western and southern parts of the range. This pattern should continue Friday night, but as winds shift more southwesterly on Saturday, the brunt of the storm finds its way to the Hurricane Ridge area. It’s hard to say how much snow is out there in those far-flung areas. But, likely, “a lot!” If you’re traveling to western or southern mountains, you could encounter pretty dangerous conditions. 

ONP rangers on Friday reported wind drifting and shallow wind-loaded pockets late in the day. It seems like there are three basic surfaces out there right now; icy wind-scoured, firm wind-loaded, and soft wind-sheltered. As winds increase Friday night, the latter may become harder to find. The new snow is accumulating on a variety of surfaces. Underneath you could find firm crusts, old powder, or maybe weak snow such as surface hoar or facets. Because of this, it may be hard to tell how any single slope will react. Frequent hand pits and small test slopes can help paint a picture for you, but even still, spatial variability is high. 

At lower elevations, the snowpack is still thin. This will help limit the avalanche danger but brings its own set of hazards. Give yourself extra time to deal with bushes, creeks, downed logs, and rocks that block your way.

Regions covered