Mt. Baker had picked up 6 feet in just the past 4 days and that was before it snowed all day today. There was plenty of snow to contribute to the big avalanche today. The Summit at Snoqualmie picked up 4 feet in the past 5 days, Mt. Hood and Mt. Bachelor 3 feet. These mountains have seen the most snowfall in the lower 48 this season and here is the forecast for the next 5 days at Mt. Baker.
The heaviest snow has now shifted South of Washington but is still going strong in Oregon where we could see another 6-10 inches tonight for Mt. Bachelor. Mt. Baker could see an additional 3-6 inches overnight. Then over the weekend several waves of moisture will be pushing through off of the Pacific bringing lighter snowfall to the Cascades. Looking for 3-6 inches Friday night and again Saturday in the Washington Cascades and 4-8 inches in Oregon. Then 1-3 inches Saturday night and again Sunday for Washington and 2-4 inches for Oregon.
By Monday morning we could have picked up another 1-2 feet for Mt. Baker and The Summit at Snoqualmie in Washington. In Oregon 2-3 feet for Mt. Hood and Mt. Baker. Here is the snowfall forecast map through Sunday.
The next big storm looks like it will move in Tuesday-Wednesday. This storm has the potential to bring several more feet to the Cascades. The snow levels look like they are going to stay low through the end of next week. They may come up as high as 4000 ft. briefly at the start of the Tuesday system before falling back below 2500 ft.
Here is the total precipitation forecast by next Thursday showing enough liquid for 4-6 feet of snow for the week in the light orange. That would suggest 2-3 feet from the Tuesday-Wednesday system on top of what falls over the weekend.
Looking long-range the ridge looks like it wants to stay out in the Pacific to the North of hawaii, and the trough off the Pacific NW coast. That should keep the weather active through the end of March with more snow. BA