In partnership with: The Friends of the Utah Avalanche Forecast Center, Utah Department of
Public Safety Division of Comprehensive Emergency Management, Salt Lake County,
and Utah State Parks
Good morning, this is
Current Conditions:
Face shots outnumbered core-shots by about 10:1 yesterday. Every turn is an adventure with early season conditions in full effect. Trail breaking in upper Little Cottonwood was arduous at best and exceedingly difficult the rest of the time due to the deep new snow directly on top of rocks and deadfall. To heighten the experience, flat light and falling snow decreased visibility throughout the day. So, why bother? Because the mid elevation turning conditions are superb, especially for this time of year. The key is to look for moderate angle, wind sheltered, slopes with smooth grassy surfaces. There have been glowing reports from people touring in bounds at the resorts, but remember they aren’t open yet and all of the backcountry rules apply. Between 8,000 and 11,000’ there is a uniform depth of snow on all aspects ranging from 16 to 24” of medium density settled snow. The snowpack has compacted by up to 50% since the beginning of this storm and is now providing a supportable skiing and boarding surface but probably not supportable enough for off trail for snowmobile riding. Alta will be sighting in their 105 howitzers this morning between 8 and 9 am and the resort will be closed.
Yesterday’s storm totals added 4.5” in upper Little Cottonwood Canyon and roughly 2” in upper Big Cottonwood. There were field reports of zipper crusts on southerly slopes towards the end of the day.
Avalanche Conditions:
The good news is that all this new snow fell directly on
warm ground and it’s not only bonded well to the ground, but most of the weak
layers within the new snow have settled out, making for mostly stable
conditions and low danger. However, we
have heard a rumor that someone triggered an avalanche yesterday on
Bottom Line:
Currently, the avalanche hazard is low, with rocks, trees and hidden obstacles presenting the main hazards.
Mountain Weather:
Weak
high pressure will move across the area today. A southerly flow will develop
late today through Saturday ahead of a system over the
General Information:
Don’t
miss the annual ski swap at REI this weekend but on by the Friends of the
If you are getting
into the backcountry, please give us a call and let us know what you’re seeing,
especially if you trigger an avalanche.
You can leave a message at 524-5304 or 1-800-662-4140. Or you can e-mail an observation to uac@avalanche .org, or you can fax an observation to
801-524-6301.
The information in
this advisory is from the U.S. Forest Service, which is solely responsible for
its content. This advisory describes
general avalanche conditions and local variations always occur.
We will update this
advisory Friday morning.
Thanks
for calling!
_____________________________________________________________________________
For more detailed weather information go to
our Mountain Weather Advisory
National
Weather Service - Salt Lake City - Snow.
For an explanation of avalanche danger
ratings:
http://www.avalanche.org/usdanger.htm