Avalanche forecast

Stevens Pass

Northwest Avalanche Center
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Avalanche danger

Mon
Alpine
3 · Considerable
Treeline
2 · Moderate
Below
2 · Moderate
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Highlights

Upper elevations will be most dangerous, where you can trigger slab avalanches in the new snow on wind-loaded slopes near ridges. A lingering, persistent weak layer could still produce large avalanches in places where you find an entirely dry snowpack. Moist snow left over from warm temperatures and rain will be a sign that you can trigger small wet slides at lower elevations.

  

Avalanche problems

  • Persistent Slabs

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

    Persistent slab avalanches can be large, break wide across terrain features, and be triggered from a distance. While these avalanches have been difficult to trigger in recent days, this could change with the new snow load. Areas where the snowpack remained mostly dry and hasn't formed new crusts will be the most suspect.

    This remains a high-consequence problem. Avoid large, open, steep terrain—especially where the snowpack may be thinner or more variable. Whumphing or shooting cracks are red flag warning signs. It’s possible to dig down and look for layers of buried surface hoar or facets and evaluate stability, but the easiest solution may be to avoid steep, unsupported slopes. 

    (2/28/2026)

    A wide crown (D2) above Crescent Lake, between the summit of Rock and Howard mountains. E, 6,300ft

    Photo: Josh Hirshberg

  • Wind Slabs

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

    Enough new snow and wind will combine to form fresh wind slabs Saturday night into Sunday. Watch for triggering avalanches on leeward sides of ridges, favored by southwest wind. Blowing snow and stiff-feeling drifted pillows of snow will point out where you can trigger slides. Steer around steep rolls (like the one pictured) in wind-loaded terrain, or stick to wind-sheltered slopes. 

    (2/27/2026)

    Blowing snow is a sign that you can trigger wind slab avalanches on leeward slopes. Whitepine Creek drainage. North Chiwaukum Mtn, 7,000ft

    Photo: Josh Hirshberg

  • Loose Wet

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

    Avalanches will likely occur naturally on Friday night, with the bulk of the rain and warm temperatures. You may still be able to trigger them on Saturday. We expect avalanches to be larger and more widespread above 5,000ft.

    Use caution on or directly below slopes showing signs of instability, like rollerballs or recent wet avalanches. If you find snow that's wet and sloppy, move to lower-angle slopes. There's a chance that water in the snowpack could trigger dangerous wet slabs on weak layers buried in the snowpack in mid-February. See more below.

    (3/5/2026)

    Fresh pinwheels in new snow.

    Photo: Julz Holder - Grounding Truth

Avalanche Discussion

Stevens Pass will pick up over 1" of water equivalent by the end of Sunday. Wet snow, overnight rain, and rapidly dropping temperatures will make for a dynamic situation. During the day, most precipitation should fall as snow at the pass level. Stay observant to where the snow is dry versus more moist.

On Friday and Saturday, observers reported triggering wet avalanches, and some ran naturally with light rain and warming temperatures. Most of these were small and ran in surface layers.

The last known persistent slab avalanches were a week ago, on February 27-28th. Natural and human-triggered avalanches occurred on leeward and sun-exposed slopes when warming followed a major westerly wind event. Wumphing was still reported from near Lake Valhalla and Yodelin areas in the past week. A weak layers of facets and surface hoar (2/18 and 2/13) sit above a crust about 1-2 feet below the snow surface. 

Regions covered