“Even though avalanche conditions are low right now, doesn’t mean they can’t happen. ” Words of wisdom from a snowmachiner who triggered a wind slab on a SE aspect of Seattle Ridge, near God’s Country yesterday. While side-hilling a steep wind loaded feature a slow moving slab broke about 15’ above just after the rider cleared the slide path. The crown was estimated between 12-18” deep and hard chunks of debris came to stop on the gentler slope below. This avalanche happened around 12:30pm on an aspect susceptible to solar warming. Although there were no reports of wet loose avalanches or roller ball activity, Southerly surfaces were warming up yesterday. Even subtle surface warming can make wind slabs more susceptible to triggering. Steeper slope angles and slopes with rocks exposed will be most suspect. Light winds today are expected to keep surfaces cooler, but pay attention for damp surface snow. Soft snow still sits on many slopes and roller balls could occur in these areas and a there is chance of shallow wet loose avalanche activity. Things to keep in mind if you are headed to the mountains to enjoy these long sunny days:
Wind Slabs: Old and hard winds slabs are easy to find but for the most part they are locked into place. Be suspect of smooth pillowed snow on steep features or in rocky areas, where they are not supported from below. Solar warming could make it easier for someone to pop one out.
Loose Snow Avalanches (Sluffs): Watch your sluff. Dry sluffs on steep slopes are probable and have been fast moving this week. And, as mentioned above, wet loose (or damp) sluffs, both natural and human triggered, may occur.
Glide Avalanches: Glide cracks continue to slowly open above popular terrain on Seattle Ridge and in other areas of the advisory area. These could release at any time, watch for these cracks and avoid being under them.
Cornices: Cornices may start to loosen with the warming – as always, give these monsters a wide berth from above and limit exposure time traveling underneath.
Persistent Slabs and Deep Slabs: There are various weak layers in our thin snowpack. Buried surface hoar sits 1-3+’ below the surface and faceted snow sits in the mid and base of the pack. These weak layers with varying degrees of strength are in a dormant stage due to plenty of time to adjust with a lack of changing weather. Although this means the layers are not producing avalanches, it doesn’t mean an outlier can’t occur which could cause a large avalanche breaking deeper in the pack.
The rider reported being just below the trees on the left side of the photo when the avalanche released. No one was caught. Photo by Brian Bird
A view of the slide from the Seward Hwy on a SE aspect of Seattle Ridge near God’s Country. 
Archives 
The Bottom Line
