Avalanche Forecast

Moist warm frontal moisture impacting the Washington Cascades will largely miss Mt. Hood, with only some light rain and snow expected Sunday night and during the day on Monday.  However W-SW transport winds will be quite strong especially on the upper mountain. Watch for shallow wind slab on wind loaded lee slopes mainly above treeline. 

Generally small loose wet avalanches are possible in isolated areas at lower elevations in steep terrain.  Be especially careful of even small loose wet avalanches around terrain traps. 

Remember that beneath any new snow received during this storm, a myriad of early season terrain hazards exist, especially at lower elevations. Expect terrain hazards with poorly covered rocks, vegetation and creeks, particularly on south-facing terrain, at lower elevations, and on exposed ridges where wind events have stripped much of the seasons snowcover.

Long stretches of above freezing temperatures, windy conditions, and periods of light rain over the weekend have likely erased persistent grain types that were observed prior to Friday's storm on Mt. Hood.

The warm and sunny weather over the past 12 days has done a number on the early season snowpack throughout the region, returning many areas to very shallow early season conditions. The most consistent snowpack remains on shaded northerly aspects in the upper below treeline to near treeline.

The overall snowpack is stable with settled old snow sitting over the strong Thanksgiving rain crust, buried about 1-3 feet.

No human-triggered avalanches have been reported in over a week. 

Observations

No recent observations.