Avalanche Forecast

A frontal system will quickly sweep through the Cascades Saturday night and Sunday morning. However this system will not favor the east slopes and should only deliver light amounts of new snow along with a significant cooling trend. 

Moderate to locally high westerly winds will build shallow wind slab on lee aspects near and above treeline for terrain adjacent to the Cascade crest. Look for wind slab development further downslope than you might expect due to locally strong winds and persistent loading. 

In much of the lower part of the below treeline band there is still insufficient snow for avalanches, so watch for early season travel hazards such as terrain traps, rocks and open creeks.

Weather and Snowpack

A front crossed the Cascades Friday but likely only produced an inch or two of new snow near the Cascade crest with no accumulations further east. Moderate westerly ridgetop winds continued on Saturday. With the mild snow levels seen so far this season, most avalanche problems have been confined to the most recent storm layers found in the upper snowpack.   

Recent Observations

During midweek NWAC pro-observer Jeff Ward was in the Washington Pass area and found generally good ski conditions and a stable snowpack. Stubborn and shallow wind slab existed near and above treeline. Thin coverage and open creeks continued to be a travel hazard at the pass elevation. 

On Friday Jeff was out again on Jove Peak east of Stevens Pass which can be representative of the east slopes closer to the Cascade crest. He saw no signs of instability but noted minor wind transport along the ridge.

In general more snow is needed in the Mission Ridge area to present an avalanche hazard. In wind-loaded terrain near and above treeline, no weak layers of note have been reported by the pro-patrol through Saturday.