Avalanche Forecast

Light showers along with a cooling trend on Tuesday will keep the avalanche danger low in the Hurricane Ridge area. 

Early season hazards still exist. Many creek beds have still not filled in for the winter.

Mixed light precipitation at Hurricane Ridge on Sunday and Sunday night did little to change the overall strong snowpack in the Hurricane Ridge area. 

A strong and well settled snowpack exists throughout the area. 

Layers can still be found in the upper snowpack, but current conditions and observations do not suggest that any of these layers will be of concern.

The height of snow across the terrain is quite variable. Numerous obstacles still exist at all elevations.

Observations

NPS rangers Sunday morning reported snowfall on the drive up to Hurricane Ridge had begun to mix with ice pellets by 8 am Sunday morning. Temperatures stayed below freezing at Hurricane Ridge on Sunday with continuous light precipitation and gusty south winds. 

NWAC Pro Observer Matt Schonwald was at Hurricane Ridge Thursday, January 3rd. Matt reported a lack of surface crust in the area due to several days of above freezing temperatures and cloud cover. Travel conditions were reportedly quite good. Observations showed a strong and well bonded snowpack which was unlikely to be affected by the rain Friday. Matt noted the highly variable snow cover with snow heights changing as much as 50% in some places within just a few feet away.