Avalanche forecast

Presidential Range

Mount Washington Avalanche Center
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Avalanche danger

Thu
Alpine
1 · Low
Treeline
1 · Low
Below
No rating
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Highlights

Wind slabs formed from Monday’s snow have become unlikely but not impossible for a human to trigger. Be weary of the larger pockets of new snow tucked behind rock buttresses. Watch for these larger drifts, you can easily travel around them. Be prepared to manage small, wet-loose sluff avalanches in steep terrain as temperatures rise. Avalanche danger today is LOW. 

The lower half of Sherburne ski trail is mostly rocks and mud and is now CLOSED at the rope, currently located across the trail at crossover 5. Please help preserve early and late season skiing by removing your skis and walking down the Tucks trail from there. 

Avalanche problems

  • Wet Slabs

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

    Wind slabs formed Monday were wetted by melting surface snow yesterday. Warmer temperatures and more sun today will continue to warm these recent wind slabs. Distribution limits this avalanche problem to the deepest pockets of new snow which will be found in wind sheltered areas behind and under rock buttresses and under some steep terrain features. Look for the larger pillows of smooth snow and pay attention to boot penetration as you move about. Steer clear of the deeper pockets to avoid this avalanche problem. 

  • Loose Wet

    • Alpine
    • Treeline
    • Below treeline
    Likelihood
    Likely
    Size
    1

    As surface snow melts, it will create a layer of wet, slushy snow which will move underfoot and possibly carry you in steep terrain. Be careful where falls have consequences. 

Avalanche Discussion

Wet slab concerns today, and over the next few days of warming are mostly limited to the recent snow in the upper snowpack. Warming, wetting and freezing cycles at the end of March have likely stabilized deeper weak layers, lessening but not eliminating our concerns for a deep wet slab avalanche. 

Much warmer weather over the next few days will keep middle and upper elevations above freezing, and until the snowpack becomes isothermal, deeper instabilities remain a possibility, however remote. Warm temperatures also bring spring hazards including: 

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Your avalanche, snowpack, or weather observations are extremely valuable to the forecasters at MWAC. Help create a more accurate avalanche forecast by submitting your observations here. 

Listen to the weekly MWAC Outreach Podcast provided by Ski The Whites. Discussions include snowpack information, weekend outlook, and general avalanche related info. 

The Harvard Cabin is now closed for the season. There is no access to the breezeway at HoJos.

Please Remember:

  • Safe travel in avalanche terrain requires training and experience. This forecast is just one tool to help you make your own decisions in avalanche terrain. You control your own risk by choosing where, when, and how you travel.
  • Avalanche danger may change when actual weather differs from the higher summits forecast.

For more information contact the US Forest Service Snow Rangers, AMC visitor services staff at the Pinkham Notch Visitor Center, or the caretakers at Hermit Lake Shelters or seasonally at the Harvard Cabin (generally December 1 through March 31). The Mount Washington Ski Patrol is also available on spring weekends.

Regions covered