West Slopes North

Avalanche danger is generally low. If you make your way to upper elevations, keep an eye out for old or new wind drifted snow pockets and the off chance they would avalanche with a human trigger.  Snow surfaces are extremely variable with hard, bumpy surfaces in many locations contributing to challenging travel. 

Cooler conditions begin Monday, and wet loose avalanche concerns from the last few days will dissipate. Depending on cloud cover and wind speeds, south and east slopes may soften in the morning. Considering the extent of sun and warm temperatures over the weekend, most surfaces are already adjusted to warm temperatures and small amounts of warming Monday morning are not expected to lead to avalanches. Keep in mind that you will find slopes previously cooked by the sun bumpy, and firm in the coming days. In general, surfaces are variable, with sun crusts, wind crusts, and low density or heavier dry snow on northerly aspects also. 

Observers reported light to moderate winds and some snow transport in above treeline areas over the weekend. You might encounter wind slabs in upper elevation locations. Meanwhile, an observer found low-density snow running easily in small loose dry avalanches as they skied down a steep, north-facing slope at around 5500ft in the Baker backcountry. Either of these problems may exist in isolated areas and we do not expect them to be a large concern on Monday. 

A large storm  February 26 - March 2 deposited 6-12 inches of water throughout the zone. It started as several feet of snow at upper elevations, but only the upper reaches of above treeline areas avoided mid-storm rain. Above 4500ft, a foot or so of snow fell on top of the rain layer, mainly staying preserved on northerly aspects. Slab and loose snow avalanches occurred during the storm, many still visible, partially buried with more snow on top. We’ve since had days of high pressure with intense sun, where more recent wet loose avalanches occurred on south-facing slopes. This coming week expect cooler temperatures, scattered snow showers Tuesday, and more snow looking ahead to the weekend to freshen things up.