Avalanche Forecast

A few lingering showers early Thursday should quickly give way to sunshine and warming temperatures. In any areas where snow from late Wednesday and Wednesday night accumulated, the rising temperatures and sunshine may lead to isolated wet snow avalanches, mainly on steep southerly facing slopes above treeline. 

Elsewhere, there should be too little recent snow from Wednesday to cause a significant increase in danger. 

Due to the low snowpack, especially below treeline, watch for terrain hazards such as open creeks, partially covered rocks and vegetation. Many areas below treeline do not have enough snow (new or existing) to pose an avalanche hazard.

A weak frontal boundary has spread some generally light rain in the region beginning Wednesday with mostly light rain as freezing levels remained near 7000 feet. Some light accumulations of new snow have likely accumulated above that elevation, especially in the Mt Baker area where greater amounts had fallen. This may have begun to build small, isolated storm slabs, though no field reports were received Wednesday.

The latest prior snowfall received in the Cascades occurred the last few days of February, followed by mostly mild sunny weather. This has created mostly strong melt-freeze surface snow with a few localized steep shaded slopes hanging on to some settled softer old snow. 

With nearly no snowfall in January and February and none so far in March. The snowpack at lower elevations remains meager to non-existent. There have not been any reports of significant avalanches for some time. 

The mid and lower snowpack west of the crest snow consists of layers of stable consolidated rounded grains or melt forms and crusts from multiple warm periods this winter.