Avalanche forecast

Snoqualmie Pass

Northwest Avalanche Center
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Avalanche danger

Mon
Alpine
1 · Low
Treeline
2 · Moderate
Below
2 · Moderate
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Highlights

A crust on most steep open slopes should make it hard for you to trigger an avalanche Sunday, but it will take a bit for the snowpack to fully lock up. Blocks of snow could shed from rocky outcrops with no warning. Don’t hangout underneath rock faces just in case a blob of snow decides to let go.

Avalanche problems

  • Glide Cracks

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

    Wet avalanches don’t stop on a dime. Even though it’s cooler and cloudy, it will take a bit for all the water to work through the snowpack and the danger to fully drop. While you could see a glide avalanche in the classic sense, take a broader view of this problem. Snow may shed from rocky faces, very steep slopes, or cornices. This won’t be something you can assess or predict easily. 

    While it’s fairly unlikely, you don’t want to be underneath them if it happens. Pay attention to what’s above you. When you can, avoid traveling under these features. It certainly won’t be a day to have a picnic below any overhead hazard.

    (3/1/2025) This glide avalanche occurred during the warm sunny weather. However, snow may continue to shed of rocks in areas like this. East flank of Humpback Photo: Arya Farahani

Avalanche Discussion

Preliminary Report: On Friday, February 28, three snowmobilers were riding near Harts Pass in the East North zone when they triggered a large slab avalanche. Two riders were caught and carried. One rider was fully buried and killed. The other was partially buried and injured. NWAC is working with local avalanche professionals to conduct an investigation. Our deepest condolences to the family, friends, and community. (NE, 6,800ft HS-AM-D2.5-R4-O)

Say goodbye to the sunshine for now. After four very warm and sunny days, a weak disturbance will bring cloudy skies, cooler temperatures, and even a bit of precipitation to the Pass. In open areas, this will likely form a crust on the surface, how thick and strong this layer becomes will likely depend on how quickly clouds arrive Saturday evening. If the skies are more clear, the surface may freeze solid. If the clouds roll in quickly, it might result in a thin breakable crust. Either way, this should limit the chance for you to trigger a wet loose slide. At lower elevations and in the trees, the snow surface may stay wet and weak, but you’ll probably be hard pressed to push enough snow to truly create a hazard. 

This “storm” could bring an inch or so of new snow to middle and upper elevations. Even if this wind whips all this new snow into a nice neat pile (slab), it will be too small to be a real danger. Similarly, a little rain on wet snow at lower elevations shouldn’t impact the hazard at all. 

On Saturday, cold dry snow was still found on steep northerly slopes above 5000ft. In these locations, the snow was very well settled and often wind affected. However, no wind slabs or other concerns were noted. 

While a few new loose wet slides were seen on Saturday the most pertinent observation was a pair of glide avalanches on the E face of Humpback Peak. Similarly, blocks of snow shed off the notoriously rocky E face of Guye Peak. These are the exact types of avalanches that might linger even after snow flurries return.

Regions covered