East Slopes Central

Allow yourself enough time to safely navigate the challenging travel conditions you'll find in many areas.  That said, there's still soft snow to be found in some north-facing terrain.  Layer up, Saturday will feature chilly morning temperatures with a brisk NE wind.     

It's been a minute (2 weeks and counting) since we've seen more than a dusting of fresh snow in the East Central zone and more broadly the WA Cascades.  This prolonged dry stretch with whipsawing freezing levels and windy periods has led to variable surface conditions, challenging travel at many elevations and aspects, and generally Low avalanche danger. 

The good news is... 1.) It will be a mostly sunny weekend in January.  Plan for chilly temps, especially in the morning and stiff E-NE ridgeline winds.  And 2.) Forecasters and backcountry travellers are still finding soft and supportable snow if you're willing to work for it. Your best bet for soft, dry snow is northern aspects at upper elevations in wind-sheltered areas. You will likely need to travel through rough and icy conditions under the forest canopy to access upper elevations and then find those elusive areas without a firm wind-crust. Southern slopes might be smooth with supportable crusts, but they'll likely be quite icy, and slips and falls could be dangerous. Consider bringing sharps, including ice axes and ski or boot crampons, to prevent long sliding falls.Eastern and Western aspects have breakable crusts of varying thicknesses to navigate. Shady slopes and north-facing aspects holding cold, dry snow are becoming very weak, with large faceted grains and surface hoar. 

On Wednesday, NWAC Forecasters traveling in the Entiat area confirmed these variable conditions but also found pleasant skiing with "recycled pow" on sheltered north aspects. This "recycled" snow consisted of large, weak, faceted grains that translated into good skiing.  They also found crusts on sunny aspects, most of which were breakable except for direct southern aspects where the crust was supportable to snowmobiles, boots, and skis. Valley bottoms and sheltered north aspects also had widespread surface hoar.  All of these surfaces will bear watching when stormy weather returns.  

Observations are helpful everyday - consider contributing to the forecast by submitting an observation.