Bollettino valanghe

West Slopes Central

Northwest Avalanche Center
Vedi sulla mappa

Pericolo valanghe

Sun
Alta quota
3 · Marcato
Limite del bosco
2 · Moderato
Sotto il limite
1 · Debole
Open full map
Non aggiornato — questo bollettino è scaduto 6 months ago. Stai vedendo condizioni passate, non il bollettino in corso.

In sintesi

Unusally light dry, snow at the surface and stronger winds coming from different directions than what we're used to means we might end up with reactive drifts that are likely to fail with a human trigger. As you make your way higher, avalanche size will grow, and they will become more sensitive. Search for actively blowing snow, identify thicker, heavier deposits with either textured or smooth, flat surfaces, and red flags like long, shooting cracks and whumphing as indicators to avoid steep slopes. 

Problemi valanghivi

  • Wind Slabs

    • Alta quota
    • Limite del bosco
    • Sotto il limite del bosco
    Probabilità
    Likely
    Dimensione
    1–2

    We don't have a typical PNW snowpack right now, so don't treat this like your normal day out. It may not have snowed for a few days, but we've had rather cold temperatures atypical of this area that have resulted in very low density snow which will easily redistribute with wind. Unsual loading with easterly winds will develop wind slabs in places you might not normally find wind slabs.

    Your best indicators will be to look for actively blowing snow and watch where it's landing. Search for rippled or textured surfaces, or large, thick, smooth "pillows" to identify wind-affected snow. A scoured area and location with a thick drift may only be a few feet apart from each other. Search for other red flags like recent avalanches, long, shooting cracks and whumphs. Steer around large, steep slopes where you find any of these characteristics.

    Take a moment to evaluate your strategy if you're in a steep area with a bad runout like cliffs, trees, rocks, or a gully below you. Getting caught in a slide and ending up encountering a terrain trap, even if the slide is small, usually doesn't have good outcomes. 

    (2/19/2026)

    At Cascade Pass on Thursday, a short, steep, wind-affected rollover produced tiny failures. Obvious indicators that larger slopes could produce larger avalanches. 

    Photo: Irene Henninger

Avalanche Discussion

Conditions may not be as reactive as we expect in some areas, but use this as a starting point to evaluate, and when in doubt, stick to gentler terrain. In neighboring zones, loose dry avalanches have run in recent days. We don't expect as many of these running as before, but in sheltered areas, you might still be able to trigger one that could knock you off your feet. I went out to Cascade Pass just north of the West Central zone on Thursday. There, wind was actively building slabs and it was easy to trigger small slabs on steep, unsupported slopes. 

It's hard to get an exact read on the new snow amounts over the last few days. SNOTEL weather station data can be extra fickle during periods of cold temperatures and light-density new snow. That being said, there is a foot or more of new snow in some areas at mid and upper elevations, and expect 6 inches just about everywhere, even low elevations.

Recent observations show patches of faceted snow and surface hoar at multiple interfaces. Our current light-density snow also facets more easily than the region’s usual dense snow, and cold temperatures are slowing strengthening. We still don’t have the deeply developed weak layers seen elsewhere in the Cascades, but there’s enough fragile snow in place that when we get another substantial load on top, conditions may be more unusual than they normally are. 

Regioni coperte