Name:
Andy Goodwin
Observation Date:
January 14, 2021
Submitted:
January 14, 2021
Zone or Region:
West South
Activity:
Walking/Hiking
Location:
Mt St Helens, Worm Flows Climbing Route
Did you observe any avalanches?
Yes
Avalanche Type:
Wet Slab
Size:
Size 3: Could bury and destroy a car, damage a truck, destroy a wood frame house, or break a few trees
Elevation:
7600
Aspect:
E
Comments:
The avalanche probably happened Tuesday night or early Wednesday. It broke along the N-S rim of Monitor ridge at 7,600 feet. The crown was about 40 cm high and 50 m long. As it dropped down the steep east aspect of the ridge it appears to have worked down to the New Year's ice layer leaving a wall nearly 2 m high on the south side of the crown. The avalanche ran out to about 6200 feet.
Photo:
None reported
Today there were very prominent meltwater channels all the way up to 8,000' on southern and eastern aspects. From 3500-8000' snow was dense and ice covered early (though it softened considerably in very sunny, calm, 40 degree mid-day conditions). There were scattered shallow wind slabs above 8'000 feet on southern aspects and down to 7600' on east aspects. Large glide clacks were common above 7,000'. Cornices collapsed at all altitudes. A cornice on the east side of the route at 5,000' had cracked 8 feet back from the cornice edge.