Avalanche forecast

East Slopes Central

Northwest Avalanche Center
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Avalanche danger

Mon
Alpine
2 · Moderate
Treeline
2 · Moderate
Below
1 · Low
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Out of date — this forecast expired 8 months ago. You’re viewing past conditions, not the current bulletin.

Highlights

Moderate fresh snow and winds may form deep drifts where you could trigger an avalanche. You can reduce your risk by steering around steep slopes beneath ridgelines with textured, wind-drifted snow. While most avalanches will be small, getting pushed into rocks or trees could still end your season. 

Avalanche problems

  • Wind Slabs

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

    Look for textured surfaces, actively blowing snow, or cornice formations to identify wind-loaded slopes. You're most likely to encounter unstable wind slabs on lee slopes below ridgelines or the base of cliffs. You can use small test features to see whether the snow cracks or triggers a mini-avalanche.  Hand pits are another great way to quickly assess the bond to the old snow surface across many different slopes as you travel. If the surface snow slides easily, it is more unstable. Cracking or easy-hand shears should point you toward lower-angle terrain as a safer option.

    We don't expect significant snowfall, and there is currently minimal snow available for transport. This lack of available snow will keep most avalanches small. But always look below you and consider what the consequences would be if you got pushed off your feet or carried by sliding snow. 

    (1/3/2026)

    Cracking in wind-drifted snow near Mission Peak. 

    Photo: Katie Warren

Avalanche Discussion

This welcome shift to colder, snowier weather arrives on Sunday. There isn't a ton of moisture headed our way, but hopefully, 3-5" of fresh snow helps bury these surface crusts. While the storm isn't bringing significant snowfall, it will be quite windy along ridgelines, keeping wind slab formation active throughout the day. 

On Saturday, in the Wenatchee Mountains, we observed surface crusts extending well into the upper elevations, with a few inches of snow on top. Strong ridgeline winds quickly transported snow into deep drifts, but wind slabs proved very difficult to trigger, with a favorable bond to the underlying crust. 

After a couple of days with warm temperatures and rain, the snowpack is moist throughout. Although you can still locate the mid-pack crusts buried 12-16" deep (12/18) and 2-4' deep (December AR Crust). These are prominent markers in the snowpack, but have not shown any signs of instability. Mid and Upper elevations have a robust snowpack 4-7' deep, while lower elevations are still struggling to catch up. Many locations below 4000ft have minimal snow for recreation. 

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