Avalanche forecast

East Slopes South

Northwest Avalanche Center
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Avalanche danger

Sun
Alpine
2 · Moderate
Treeline
1 · Low
Below
1 · Low
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Out of date — this forecast expired 6 months ago. You’re viewing past conditions, not the current bulletin.

Highlights

Use a cautious approach as you climb or ride into the wind zone. It may be easy for a human to trigger small slabs of drifted snow near ridgelines. While these may be small, still weigh the consequences of a small avalanche in big terrain. 

Avalanche problems

  • Wind Slabs

    • Alpine
    • Treeline
    • Below treeline
    Likelihood
    Possible
    Size
    1–1.5

    Light new accumulations and moderate ridgeline wind speeds will form shallow wind slabs near ridges and close to the Cascade Crest. These won’t be big, but they could trigger easily if they form on surface hoar or faceted surfaces over a crust from our recent high pressure. 

    Be mindful of terrain can promote wind loading, like the downwind sides of ridges, below cornices, terrain depressions, and near rock and cliff bands. While most of these slabs will be shallow, still be mindful of radical terrain where a small avalanche could be consequential. Pay attention to blowing snow and sharp drifts to help you anticipate wind loaded features. Defeault to less steep terrain if you notice cracks shooting out under your feet or machine. 

    (2/11/2026) West South Zone

    An example of cracking in wind-drifted snow in the nearby West South zone this past week.

    Photo: Andy Harrington

Avalanche Discussion

A storm will bring light snowfall and an uptick in avalanche danger in wind loaded terrain. The precipitation forecast will likely not be enough snow to impact the avalanche danger until you move into the wind zone, where moderate winds will be capable of building thin reactive slabs. Use a cautious approach in these wind-loaded areas, since slabs may form over weak surfaces and could break wider than expected. 

Recent observations report areas of surface hoar and near-surface facets resting over a crust that was buried on February 7th. We’re not sure whether these surfaces will be buried intact or how much load we’ll need to tip the scales in wind-loaded terrain, but these small incremental loads will be good reasons to start stepping back. If these instabilities materialize, they’ll start shallow, so assessing these storm instabilities will be easy since you wo’t need to dig down that far. Quick hand pits or shovel tilt tests can be helpful tools to help you identify shallowly  buried weak layers. 

Early-season coverage or areas of bare ground continue to plague the lower elevations of the east-south, especially east of Darland Mountain. Even in terrain higher up, there are a lot of exposed hazards that you don't normally see this time of year. These include rocks, random holes, creeks, and downed logs. Give yourself extra time and precaution to manage these “early season” conditions and know that some hazards may be obscured by new snow.

We could really use the observations as snow trickles in. Let us know what you see by submitting an observation here or on the AvyApp. 

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