Mar 10, 2011 - Avalanche at Mt Hood Meadows

For those of us who ski Pea Gravel Ridge on Mt Hood, take a look at:

www.skihood.com/Community-and-News/Meado...3/March-10-Avalanche

and for specific data

www.nwac.us/forecast/avalanche/current/zone/13/   - info not likely to persist

That happened Thusday morning, March 10.  What's alarming to me is the distance it ran (a few hundred feet past the Heather chair).  It's not too far from the "No uphill climbing" sign that Meadows vigorously enforces from time to time.  It's a great reminder that there is no protection guarantee even within the "Permit Area Boundary".

NICE ONE! With the heavy snows Sunday through Tuesday or so we've got a shot at getting a few more of these impressive monsters.

Don't forget the now very deeply buried mid-Feb layer. It would seem that this Mt. Hood avalanche should have released at that weakness given it's size. Notice that there are different forecasts in the North Cascades and Olympics regarding this layer. I wouldn't imagine folks would be exposing themselves to major avalanche paths during the next couple very stormy days, but from NWAC:

While several episodes of warming and strong winds last week have created some strength within the upper part of the increasingly deep NW snowpack, and this has helped shift most recent avalanche activity away from older buried weaknesses toward more direct action avalanching involving primarily the most recent received storm snow. However, while this has decreased the potential for human triggered slides involving more deeply buried weak layers near the old late January and early February crust...these weaknesses remain and may be reactivated by large storm loads. Such loading is possible starting Sunday and continuing intermittently through Tuesday or Wednesday of next week and should require increasingly cautious and conservative route finding and decision making....with the recommendation that BC travelers avoid avalanche path runouts until all of this recent snow has a chance to stabilize.



The weakness will likely come back again in early to mid-May (if not before) when warming becomes significanly greater and nights stop freezing.

East of the Cascades it may still be something that could be human triggered noting the post from White Pass where the weakness is not as deeply buried.

More analysis from Mt. Hood Ski Patrol:
www.skihood.com/Community-and-News/Meado...vestigates-Avalanche

More analysis from Mt. Hood Ski Patrol:
www.skihood.com/Community-and-News/Meado...vestigates-Avalanche

Amazing trimline on that last photo.