Avalanche forecast

West Slopes South

Northwest Avalanche Center
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Avalanche danger

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

Windy weather Sunday could help build slabs near the tops of ridges, near the base of cliffs, and along mid-slope gullies. Blowing snow, fresh drifts, and textured surfaces can help you anticipate and avoid wind-loaded features.

Avalanche problems

  • Wind Slabs

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

    With increasing winds on Sunday and several inches of snow available to blow around, it’s no surprise that wind-loaded slopes will be the most dangerous. Fortunately, they should be rather easy to anticipate, spot, and avoid. Visual clues like blowing snow, scoured slopes, and cornices can help you figure out local wind patterns and anticipate wind-loaded aspects. When you see pillow-like drifts, find a way to go around. As winds continue to increase throughout the day, you may start to notice wind slabs growing deeper and building along the sides of mid-slope features.

    (2/18/2023) Classic signs of wind loading were found on NE-SE aspects above 4800ft. Photo: Dallas Glass

Avalanche Discussion

While we aren’t expecting too much in the way of new snow by Sunday afternoon around the West South zone, winds will be pretty significant. This should help maintain, and maybe even slightly increase the avalanche danger around the zone. This will be especially true near the volcanoes where more recent storm snow is available for transport by the wind. 

On Saturday, observations from the Tattoosh range near Mt Rainier indicated plenty of signs of wind-transported snow at mid and upper elevations. Several wind-loaded features produced cracks and very small slabs with up-track tests. 

At the moment we’re tracking the upper snowpack layers above the 2/13 crust (down 6-12in). However, we think most avalanche activity will stay near or above the 2/17 interface (currently down 2-4in). We haven’t heard of any recent slides in the West South zone since last Tuesday. That speaks to the relatively quiet weather and general trickle of new snow.  Since Friday, weather station totals range from 1-4 in and counting. 

Regions covered