Avalanche forecast

West Slopes Central

Northwest Avalanche Center
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Avalanche danger

Tue
Alpine
2 · Moderate
Treeline
2 · Moderate
Below
1 · Low
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Highlights

We received around 2 ft of snow Saturday night, ending with rain up through the mid-elevations and a misty day Sunday. Triggering new storm snow avalanches is possible primarily at upper elevations Monday.  Further down in elevation, the snowpack progressively gets wetter and if you're punching deep into the snowpack there's a small chance you could trigger a wet snow avalanche. 

Avalanche problems

  • Storm Slabs

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

    Residual storm slab avalanches could fail with a human trigger in the 2 feet or so of new snow that fell Saturday night. Identify locations that are deeper and wind drifted, as those areas are more likely to react to a human trigger. You'll find dry snow at upper elevations, and as you drop toward mid elevations the slab might be moist but it could still fail as a storm slab avalanche.

    If you notice any clues like long shooting cracks or notably stiffer snow, take these as obvious clues to avoid slopes greater than 30°. In general, while the snowpack is adjusting to these large load of snow that recently fell consider avoiding steep slopes during your travels on Monday. This is especially the case in high-consequence areas with terrain traps such as gullies, benches, trees, or cliffs beneath you. 

    (12/2/2023)

    An example from earlier this year of a slab avalanche, similar to what you might trigger on Monday. 

    Photo: Phil Straub - Cascade Mtn Ascents

  • Loose Wet

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

    Snow transitioned to rain in the early morning hours of Sunday. Wet snow avalanches were reported in all the neighboring zones. We're uncertain whether 24 hours later the snowpack will have consolidated enough that wet avalanche activity will have ended. If you see any new avalanche activity or are sinking deep into wet snow, steer clear of slopes steeper than 30° and travel quickly or avoid the runouts beneath large avalanche paths. 

    (12/10/2023)

    A small wet loose avalanche in the neighboring Stevens Pass zone, which was seen on Sunday. 

    Photo: Matt Primomo

Avalanche Discussion

Expect to find variably wind-affected dry snow surfaces at upper elevations. Lower down the snowpack is moist and punchy with many early-season hazards still exposed. Warm temperatures are contributing to a rapidly settling snowpack so we expect stability to quickly improve. The largest factor that's keeping us more conservative is that we're not going to get a deep freeze. Freezing levels are only dropping to 5000ft by the end of the day Monday so you can still expect to find very soggy lower elevations. If we're lucky, we may get a tiny bit of a surface freeze Sunday night which will contribute to slowing wet snow avalanche activity. 

Regions covered