East Slopes South

Challenging travel conditions with firm, icy surfaces may be the greatest hazard you encounter. Watch for changing conditions on sunny slopes as snow surfaces thaw throughout the day. You may be able to trigger a small wet avalanche in steep, rocky terrain by the afternoon.

A solid freeze Tuesday night should help create generally safe avalanche conditions. Expect icy and variable snow in the morning. Make sure you have the equipment and skills you need to navigate these potentially dangerous travel conditions. Another spring-like day will cause little change, and avalanches remain unlikely. It will take a while for the sun to soften the surface of the snowpack Wednesday. You’re most likely to find wet snow in the afternoon on steep sunny slopes with rocks and cliffs where the snowpack is shallower. While any slides should remain small and isolated, don’t let one catch you by surprise and push you into a terrain trap. Even a small avalanche can hurt you if it carries you over a cliff or buries you deeply in a gully.

NWAC forecasters visited the Little Naches SnoPark on Monday and found a stable snowpack with no new avalanches (observation). The top 2 inches of surface snow thawed on sunny slopes by mid-day, and nice riding conditions with spring-like corn could be found with good timing. A large glide crack was also observed, but no glide avalanches. It was a good reminder to identify and avoid any slopes with crevasse-like cracks in the snowpack. The recent warm temperatures and sun also caused significant loss in snow cover. Many low elevation slopes have melted out, while SNOTELS throughout the zone report total snow heights of 2-5ft between 4500-6000ft.

Warm temperatures and sunshine look to continue through the workweek. Normally, a significant and prolonged thaw like we are experiencing would have us concerned. However, there are several factors that have prevented an avalanche cycle this time around: 1) Long winter nights and generally clear skies continue to allow the snowpack to freeze hard by morning. 2) The low sun angle limits the duration and intensity of sunshine on snow surfaces, and a thick surface crust is slow to melt. 3) Two wet avalanche cycles and two weeks of predominantly above freezing temperatures have transitioned the snowpack to be able to handle more unseasonable warmth.