Avalanche forecast

East Slopes South

Northwest Avalanche Center
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Avalanche danger

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Out of date — this forecast expired 3 years ago.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

Highlights

Look for pockets of wind-drifted snow at upper elevations on Tuesday. You’ll likely find these wind-drifted slabs lurking on leeward slopes, below cornices, and under rock and cliff bands. Avoid these slopes if you notice snow that sounds hollow like a drum or signs of instability like shooting cracks or recent avalanches. 

Avalanche problems

  • Wind Slabs

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

    If you find soft snow at the highest elevations, you may also find a wind slab lurking nearby. We have uncertainty regarding the distribution of soft snow across the zone, but it may exist at upper elevations.

    So, if you find soft snow, look for these wind slabs on leeward terrain features, below cornices, or at the base of rock and cliff bands. You can also look for rounded pillows of snow, textured surfaces, or fresh drifts to help you identify where the wind has been at work. And as always, pump the brakes and seek more sheltered slopes if you see shooting cracks or hear snow that sounds hollow like a drum. 

    (4/2/2022) 

    You can anticipate where wind slabs live by looking for textured snow or pillow-like slabs. 

    locations. Photo: Dallas Glass

Avalanche Discussion

The recent atmospheric river ended warm and unfortunately brought rain up to 6500 ft in neighboring zones. We have uncertainty about how high this rain/snow line sits across the East South, but based on observations from neighboring zones, it likely extends to 6,500- 7,000 ft. With that, be prepared for a mixed bag of conditions. Lower and middle elevations have a shallow snowpack and likely a breakable crust. At upper elevations, look out for a drier and more layered snowpack. 

On Saturday, I traveled across the east-south to scout out early-season access points. Unfortunately, I found very little snow at the Ahtanum Meadows SnoPark. Moving west, I found a deeper, more usable snowpack at Bumping Lake and West. You can look at the photos in the gallery for more information. 

If you get out into the East South, let us know what you see by  submitting an observation !

 

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