Avalanche forecast

Mt Hood

Northwest Avalanche Center
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Avalanche danger

Thu
Alpine
3 · Considerable
Treeline
3 · Considerable
Below
2 · Moderate
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Out of date — this forecast expired 4 years ago. You’re viewing past conditions, not the current bulletin.

Highlights

You can trigger an avalanche in areas where the wind has drifted new snow into reactive slabs. Once you lose the wind, you lose the problem. So consider traveling on more sheltered slopes and give steep wind-loaded features some space. 

 

Avalanche problems

  • Wind Slabs

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

    New snow and heavy drifting have created slabs 1-3 ft thick at mid and upper elevations. Additional new snowfall, cold temperatures, and continued drifting will help keep these slabs fresh and potentially sensitive to your weight. You’ll find these slabs forming on the leeward side of ridges and moraines, under cornices, in gullies/couloirs, and cross-loading alpine features. Don’t be surprised if you find these wind-drifted slabs further down slope than usual due to recent strong winds. 

    Use visual clues to help you identify slopes of concern. Look for blowing snow, cornice growth, ripples, or rounded pillows at the snow surface to identify where the wind has been at work. If you see shooting cracks under your skis/sled or feel wind-stiffened snow, be ready to take a big step back and avoid nearby steep slopes. 

    Heads up if you head into the alpine, strong wind speeds may have created slabs that maybe less forgiving and on the firmer side ( 1F- P hard). These pockets may act stubborn and show minimal signs of instability until it's too late. These hard slabs will often break above you and act in surprising ways. So if the snow feels stiff or sounds hollow like a drum, get the heck out!

    (1/17/2023)

    Shooting crack in wind drifted snow - a red flag that should not be ignored.  Avoid wind loaded slopes if you notice signs like this. 

    Photo: Joe Dellaporta

Avalanche Discussion

Avalanche Fatality: Colchuck Pk, East Central Zone: Read the preliminary report here.

As I'm writing this at 5 pm on Tuesday, the Mt Hood Meadows weather station has picked up 9 inches of new snow ( 1.40 inches of SWE). The main story during the event was the extreme wind speeds with the Cascade Express at 7300 ft  pushing gusts in the 90’s out of the southwest. Due to this, you may find wind slabs forming in many unusual locations, such as further down slope than usual or forming well below treeline. So keep an eye out for wind stiffened snow at all elevations. 

New snow is falling on a mixed bag of surfaces. In past days, observers have reported moist snow on solar slopes, a freezing rain crust that may extend to 6000 ft, and soft preserved snow on shaded aspects. So as new snow piles up, be sure to dig down to check how the new snow is acting with the old snow surface. 

On Friday,  I traveled into the Gunsight Ridge area to track possible weak surfaces on shaded aspects before heading into this active weather patter. Due to high wind speeds, I didn't find much in the form of surface hoar or near-surface facets. That being said,  it doesn't mean it does not exist in other areas, so keep an eye out as new snow starts trickling in. What caught my eye was a sneaky layer of buried surface hoar about 17 inches below the snow surface. I haven't seen this layer in other areas on the mountain, but it's something worth highlighting if you travel along these ridges in the Bennett Pass or Pocket Creek areas. 

If you get out, let us know what you see by submitting a public observation.

 

 

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