Avalanche forecast

Mt Hood

Northwest Avalanche Center
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Avalanche danger

Mon
Alpine
4 · High
Treeline
4 · High
Below
3 · Considerable
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Highlights

Very dangerous avalanche conditions exist around Mt. Hood. Heavy snowfall, strong winds, and some warming are the perfect ingredients for natural avalanche activity. Expect the most dangerous conditions during the morning hours, but don't try to overthink it. Just avoid all terrain where avalanches can start, run, or stop on Sunday. 

Avalanche problems

  • Wind Slabs

    • Alpine
    • Treeline
    • Below treeline
    Likelihood
    Very Likely
    Size
    2–3

    Over the past 3 days, significant loading has created thick slabs of wind-drifted snow in many start zones around Mt Hood. These wind slabs will easily be large enough to kill you and run far into canyon terrain on Sunday. Due to the recent high wind speeds, you may find these slabs further down slope, on mid-slope convexities, or even down in the trees.

    While terrain-driven winds may have formed slabs on some atypical aspects, expect the largest and most consequential slabs to exist on leeward slopes (NE-E-SE aspects). Blowing snow, recent cornice formation, and textured surfaces can help you identify where slabs exist. However, it won’t be the day to thread the needle in these areas; consider avoiding all travel on and below steep, wind-loaded features, which also includes canyon run-outs that are often exposed to significant overhead avalanche paths. 

    (3/14/2025)

    SW winds have been cranking and moving lots of snow in the past days, so expect thick slabs on leeward canyon terrain on Sunday. 

    Photo: Joe Dellaporta

  • Storm Slabs

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

    New snow continues to pile up, keeping storm slab instabilities present. Avalanche professionals around the zone reported reactive storm snow on Saturday. With continued overnight snowfall and increased warming during the overnight hours, look for storm slabs to be primed for human triggering, especially during the early part of the day. In some cases, such as during periods of heavy snowfall or with warming, these slabs may even release naturally. You can avoid this avalanche problem by sticking to well-supported terrain under 35 degrees in steepness.

     

    (3/15/2025)

    This small slab was triggered after the party heard a whumpf and got a shooting crack in the nearby West South zone. 

  • Loose Wet

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

    Rain may extend to nearly 5000 ft early sunday morning. With lots of recent dry snow, expect a round of natural wet loose avalanches across lower elevations. Be mindful of terrain where these could grow large, such as in open bowls or in steep gully features. Take a big step back if you notice rain or really wet snow at your trailhead elevation. Be mindful of steep overhead slopes and terrain traps like open creeks that could easily exacerbate the consequences of a small avalanche. 

     

    (2/23/2025)

    An example of the type of wet loose avalanches you may observe on Sunday morning. 

    Photo: NPS Rangers/MRNP

Avalanche Discussion

Expect another day of dynamic avalanche conditions on Sunday. Saturday night will bring a warming trend that may bring rain up to nearly 5000 ft. With the amount of new snow and loading we have received in the past days, it wouldn’t surprise me to see a round of natural avalanche activity. The big question for Sunday is whether most of the avalanche activity will be confined to the overnight hours or will it extend into the early part of the day when you leave the trailhead? It's hard to say, but regardless of the timing, expect very dangerous avalanche conditions to exist during the first half of the day.

Don’t underestimate lower elevations either. Below 5500 ft, we have seen solid accumulations over a widespread crust that could act as the perfect bed surface for avalanche activity. While avalanches will be smaller at these elevations, they could still be consequential around terrain traps. Conditions will be complex, to say the least, and the safest strategy will be to just choose mellow terrain away from avalanche path runout zones.

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