Avalanche forecast

Mt Hood

Northwest Avalanche Center
View on map

Avalanche danger

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Out of date — this forecast expired 4 years ago.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

Highlights

Rain, warm temperatures, and sunshine by Tuesday afternoon will create dangerous avalanche conditions at upper elevations. Wet avalanches could grow large, cornices may fall, and the snowpack will need time to adjust to the rapid thaw. Build in a wide margin for error and choose conservative, low-angle terrain.

Avalanche problems

  • Loose Wet

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

    Rain will continue to fall well into the alpine overnight Monday. Expect cloudy skies early Tuesday as conditions dry out, and increasing sunshine in the afternoon as freezing levels skyrocket to 10,000ft. As the recent dry snow becomes wet and saturated it will rapidly lose strength. Wet loose avalanches could gouge into the snowpack, build significant mass, and run far downslope. When you find wet sticky snow or see new avalanches, dial it back and stay off of and out from under steep slopes. We expect most of the natural avalanche activity to stay small, but you could see a larger avalanche in big complex terrain at upper elevations where more snow accumulated over the past few days.

    Example photo of a far-running wet loose avalanche on Pea Gravel Ridge.

    Photo: Andrew Kiefer

Avalanche Discussion

Observers early Monday enjoyed their last powder turns before snowfall transitioned to rain. The warm-up caused widespread wet loose activity near and below treeline. Storms since Friday brought up to 15in of cold dry snow with precipitation favoring the south and west sides of Mt Hood. The more recent cold powder, the more snow there will be to entrain as wet avalanches run in the coming days. Wet avalanche activity may peak during the rain overnight Monday, or could be ongoing with warming and sunshine throughout the day. Cornices may also fall on slopes below acting as huge triggers. The snowpack will need time to adjust, and Tuesday will not be a day to mess around if you venture out into the backcountry. 

A handful of artificially triggered wind slabs to size D2 occurred Sunday in upper elevation terrain around Timberline Lodge and Mt Hood Meadows. Many cornice chunks fell naturally over the weekend, and observers noted cornices were generally larger and more sensitive to triggers than they typically have been this winter. All the recent new and wind drifted snow sits on the 3/17 crust, with a strong spring-like snowpack below.

Regions covered