Avalanche forecast

West Slopes South

Northwest Avalanche Center
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Avalanche danger

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

Continued snowfall will maintain the possibility of triggering avalanches on Thursday, particularly in wind-loaded terrain. Use visual clues, such as textured surfaces or fresh cornices, to help identify features to avoid. The southern portion of the zone should be stormier, possibly leading to larger slabs.

Avalanche problems

  • Wind Slabs

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

    Wednesday had winds strong enough to transport snow onto leeward slopes, creating shallow wind slabs. With more snow and another round of light to moderate winds, be on the lookout for a fresh crop of slabs on Thursday morning. The further south in the zone you travel, the more snow and wind is expected, so slabs could be larger and potentially more sensitive. 

    Regardless of your location, look for new pillow-like drifts, textured surfaces, fresh cornices, or scoured areas to help identify where wind slabs could be lurking. The wind often likes to deposit snow on convex rollovers, near the base of cliffs, or in confined chutes/gullies. So approach these features with a keen eye, and if you notice signs of wind-loading, find a new route.

    (2/18/2026)

    A small intentionally triggered wind slab avalanche near White Pass. This slab was 8-15 inches thick. NE, 6600ft. 

    Photo: Dallas Glass

Avalanche Discussion

This week is a little like Groundhog Day - a few inches of snow, maybe some wind, generally cold temperatures, and mostly cloudy skies. You're most likely to run into avalanches large enough to be consequential in wind-loaded terrain, but you could find that shallow loose avalanches occur on slopes where only a few inches of snow rest over a crust. These could be human-triggered or occur naturally if the sun breaks through the clouds. You may find that these loose slides range from dry to moist to wet, depending on their exposure to sunshine.

Overall, the upper snowpack is mainly comprised of low-density snow. On slopes that typically receive direct sunshine, the amount of snow above the 2/7 crust is much thinner, and you likely won't find the 2/13 interface. Instead, you may find a subtle crust on, or just below, the surface. 

As you move toward more shaded aspects, the picture gets a bit more complicated. You could find 1.5-2 feet of recent storm snow over the prominent 2/7 crust. Within this snow, the 2/13 interface can often be identified as a thin grey line. This interface consists of weak grains, such as buried surface hoar or near-surface facets. This is the area of the snowpack we have our eye on moving forward. As we incrementally increase the amount of snow over this weak layer, it could reach its tipping point and produce avalanches. That could be achieved through continued snowfall or wind-loading. Time will tell if this layer comes to life or settles into the surrounding snow and begins to heal.

Regions covered