Avalanche forecast

West Slopes Central

Northwest Avalanche Center
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Avalanche danger

Sat
Alpine
2 · Moderate
Treeline
2 · Moderate
Below
2 · Moderate
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Out of date — this forecast expired last year. You’re viewing past conditions, not the current bulletin.

Highlights

New snow and gusty winds are on the way. Stay off steep slopes holding freshly wind drifted snow. You can find this more readily at higher elevations, but fresh slabs could form lower down as well. Also, be alert for snow shedding from cliffs, cornice falls, and glide avalanches until prolonged cooling takes hold.

   

Avalanche problems

  • Glide Cracks

    • Alpine
    • Treeline
    • Below treeline
    Likelihood
    Unlikely
    Size
    1.5–2.5

    Don’t linger directly under cornices, snowy cliffs, or glide cracks lurking in the terrain above you. The likelihood of seeing additional wet avalanche activity or cornice falls is quite low, but it’s not totally out of the question. If a glide slab or cornice does come unglued from the mountain, it shouldn’t have much difficulty getting a bunch of wet snow moving down the hill. A falling cornice can trigger a larger avalanche on the slopes below.

    (12/18/2024)

    Rocky, snow-covered terrain can still shed snow until we have consistent cooling.  

    Photo: Irene Henninger

  • Wind Slabs

    • Alpine
    • Treeline
    • Below treeline
    Likelihood
    Possible
    Size
    1–1.5

    After a bunch of wet, too warm weather, new snow will accumulate at mid and upper elevations. Moderate to strong winds are forecast throughout the day as well. This is the setup to transition back to dry snow avalanche problems.

    Actively blowing and drifting snow should show you the slopes where you are most likely to trigger a slab. With a wet crust below the new snow, it will be easy to track new and wind drifted snow depths as you gain elevation or change aspects. You might find shallow, unstable slabs in wind-sheltered terrain in locations that most snowfall.

    (2/25/2023)

    Small wind-drifted features can show you if wind slabs are a problem to look out for

    Photo: Jason Speer

Avalanche Discussion

Reported avalanche activity dropped off on Thursday, with the only fresh, wet slab avalanches coming from the West South forecast zone. An NWAC Forecaster in West North reported plenty of prior avalanches but none that appeared to have released overnight or during the day on Thursday. Uphill travel was easy on supportable wet snow. Going downhill was not so easy. No new avalanches were reported from either Stevens or Snoqualmie Pass. Most weather stations saw high temperatures decrease between 15 and 25 degrees from their Wednesday highs. Even with cooler temperatures, wet snow is still on the radar until we see consistently cooler temperatures and new snow starts to accumulate.

Regions covered