Bollettino valanghe

West Slopes North

Northwest Avalanche Center
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Pericolo valanghe

Wed
Alta quota
2 · Moderato
Limite del bosco
2 · Moderato
Sotto il limite
1 · Debole
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Non aggiornato — questo bollettino è scaduto 4 years ago. Stai vedendo condizioni passate, non il bollettino in corso.

In sintesi

You may find wind-loaded pockets of snow that you could trigger an avalanche on at upper elevations. If you see active signs of loading or thicker drifts of snow consider steering around steep slopes where these new slabs exist.  Conditions will be variable on Tuesday, with crusts on steep southerly aspects and wind textured surfaces present at near and above treeline areas.

Problemi valanghivi

  • Wind Slabs

    • Alta quota
    • Limite del bosco
    • Sotto il limite del bosco
    Probabilità
    Possible
    Dimensione
    1–1.5

    Your main avalanche concern exists in the form of small, newly built wind slabs that formed in the last 24 hours or so. Groups in the Baker backcountry on Monday found wind had redistributed much of the low density snow into variable, textured surfaces, making travel more challenging in some areas. Monday was a mixed bag, where many wind-affected slopes were unreactive, however isolated wind loaded features harbored small, reactive wind slabs.  A few inches of new snow with light to moderate winds are forecasted during the day, and new slabs will continue forming, keeping avalanche conditions much the same, if not elevated slightly on Tuesday.

    Avalanches may remain small in size, but keep your surroundings in mind if you venture onto steep slopes. Have an escape plan if you trigger an avalanche. Be wary of even a small avalanche if it could carry you into a terrain trap. If you trigger an avalanche it would likely be on slopes with terrain features like convex rollovers, gully walls, or around cliffs and rock outcroppings. Look for blowing snow, changes in snow consistency, or visual clues like cornices and wind-scoured ridgelines to identify areas of wind slab. Steer around these wind-loaded locations if they are on steep slopes.

    If the weather turns out differently than forecasted, avalanche conditions could vary from the forecast.  

    (1/2/2023)

    On Monday wind redistributed snow in the Baker backcountry, visible in this photo by seeing active wind moving snow from the left side of the photo, where bumpy old tracks are still visible, to the right side, where a newly drifted smooth surface exists. 

    Photo: Jason Speer

Avalanche Discussion

Saturday small and large human-triggered slab avalanches occurred. The avalanches mainly failed about a foot deep, partway down the new snow layer which coats the Christmas crust. When I was out at Canyon Creek on Sunday I found the layer that I suspect many of the avalanches failed on, however I was unable to get tests to fail at that layer, indicating weaknesses are healing. There's still a small chance you could trigger a deeper avalanche on this layer, especially at higher elevations. You'll have to be in just the right wind loaded spot to trigger one of these larger avalanches, but keep it in mind if you're stepping out into larger, more wind-affected terrain. 

About 2 feet of snow sits over the Christmas crust, with a bit more or less depending on where you are in the zone. Low density surfaces were affected by wind in many upper elevation areas on Monday. South-facing slopes saw intense sun Sunday, and the previously low density surface snow transitioned to a crust on steep south-facing terrain throughout the zone. 

Regioni coperte