Hatcher Pass

The avalanche danger is LOW at all elevations.

Shallow instabilities of wind-drifted snow are lingering on steep, upper elevation slopes throughout the forecast area. 

Spring is here, but warming has been gradual. Triggering small, but far-running wet-snow avalanches during the heat of the day is becoming more possible. Look out for smooth, firm slabs along ridgelines and the sides of gullies, and watch for rollerballing and other signs of warming in the upper snowpack. Avoid wet or punchy slopes in the heat of the day. 

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Hatcher Pass has received just one inch of snow over the last month. It's been over 40 days since IM snotel has logged a daytime high above freezing. A brief period of winds in late March has been the only weather to contribute to the avalanche danger. All this to say, conditions are stale, but generally stable. Hatcher Pass remains a smattering of variable surfaces from firm, impenetrable and winded, shallow breakable crusts to deep and wallowy facets. Windward and southerly slopes are beginning to see exposed tundra and summer surfaces. We've started to see a gradual transition to spring, and the sun has been gaining strength. So far, hard re-freezes overnight and below freezing daytime temperatures have paired with some light winds to keep snow surfaces cool enough to stave off significant warming. Soft, dry snow can still be found on protected, northerly aspects, but it won't come easily. While triggering a large avalanche is unlikely, here are a few key considerations as you travel: 

PERSISTENT SLABS:  You may find small pockets of instability at upper elevations where old wind slabs rest above weak sugary snow below. Skiers on Thursday found this setup and triggered a slide on the southeast side of Marmot—fortunately, no one was caught, and the skier was able to ski off the slab. Last week, we found this setup on both the north and south sides of the Hatch Peak weather station ridge, where we had poor scores in stability tests (Observation). The takeaway from recent avalanches and poor stability tests is that we are not out of the woods yet for dry snow avalanches. Fortunately, avalanches will be isolated, shallow, difficult to trigger, and relatively small. The best way to manage this problem is to ski or ride slopes one at a time and be wary of slopes where you find thin, softer slabs of snow connecting to thicker drifts (this is where you could trigger larger slides similar to the slide on Marmot). You can further hedge your bets by digging down into the upper 1' of the snowpack, looking for weak snow below surficial wind drifts and crusts. 

WET LOOSE: 

Despite below-freezing temperatures, the strong spring sun has done a good job of warming slopes basking in direct sun.  The weathered landscape of Hatcher Pass has done well staving off any wet snow problems thus far, with little to no natural wet loose activity observed. That said, if you are skiing or riding late in the day near sunny steep rocky slopes and find a wet snow surface deeper than just a few inches, it may be time to seek cooler slopes. Today's cloudy skies should help limit the sun's effect, but they might also contribute to some light greenhousing and a general rise in the relative humidity and ambient temperature. Avoid slopes that become wet and punchy during the heat of the day. 

RECENT AVALANCHES: 

Yesterday, forecasters in Purches Creek observed a few new wet-loose avalanches and some more evidence of recent wind-driven instabilities. The most noteworthy avalanche of the last month was a skier-triggered persistent slab on 3/31 on the SE side of Marmot at around 4,300' at 5:20 pm. This avalanche failed within old wind slabs on facets and propagated across the top of a gully feature, and entrained moist surface snow and loose facets near the ground. This made what would have been a shallow and small hard slab avalanche more consequential as it moved slowly into a terrain trap feature. There are several small (D1), wet loose point releases on southerly aspects in Hatcher Pass in steep terrain at upper elevations from the last week.