Avalanche forecast

Olympics

Northwest Avalanche Center
View on map

Avalanche danger

Sat
Alpine
2 · Moderate
Treeline
2 · Moderate
Below
1 · Low
Open full map
Out of date — this forecast expired 4 years ago. You’re viewing past conditions, not the current bulletin.

Highlights

Fresh, shallow slabs will form near ridgelines and above treeline as temperatures cool Thursday night into Friday. Use visual clues such as fresh, sharp cornices and wind lips to identify and avoid steep slopes with deeper drifts. Evaluate test slopes as you ascend to check for slab reactivity, anticipating an increase in danger as the snow becomes drier. 

Avalanche problems

  • Wind Slabs

    • Alpine
    • Treeline
    • Below treeline
    Likelihood
    Possible
    Size
    1

    We're expecting around 6" of snow to fall Thursday night through Friday. At most elevations, avalanche danger will be starting from scratch as a thin rain crust formed up to 5400 ft Thursday morning with limited snow accumulation during the day. Wind slabs will be most dangerous at upper elevations where temperatures remained colder during this mild storm. Strong SSW winds will continue to transport snow through the day on Friday. You can trigger an avalanche that could take you for a ride anywhere you find more than six inches of wind-drifted snow on a steep slope. Identifying the direction of wind loading is half the battle.  Wind-stripped sides of ridges will typically have fresh cornices and wind loading on the opposite side. Active snow and wind transport will also help you identify where the snow is depositing.

Avalanche Discussion

NWAC professionals were in the Mt. Hood backcountry on Thursday. They observed rain up to 4000 ft turning to wet snow near 4800 ft and dry snow above around 5500 ft. Given the mild temperatures, there was minimal snow available for transport. Rainfall up to 5400 ft and milder temperatures early Friday formed an upside-down slab near the snow surface. This slab did not have a propensity to propagate. The remainder of the upper snowpack was right-side-up and well-bonded to the Christmas Crust (visible in the snowpit image from Maggies). You could trigger a shallow loose (dry-ish) avalanche on a very steep, wind-protected NW aspect.

Forecasting is a community effort and you can help. Please consider submitting an observation if you head out on Friday!

2022-2023 Forecast Schedule

NWAC will issue an avalanche forecast every Friday, Saturday and Sunday and every holiday mid-week day the Hurricane Ridge Road is open from December-early April.  We will issue Avalanche Watches or Warnings when conditions warrant.  New for this season, we will not update the non-holiday midweek discussion.  Our mountain weather forecasts will continue to cover the Olympics and are issued twice a day through late April.  If you have questions or feedback, please contact us at [email protected] and [email protected]. 

If you're out in the snow, share your observations with us and your local backcountry community.

Regions covered