Avalanche Advisory
Advisory: Uintas Area Mountains Issued by Craig Gordon for Tuesday - January 19, 2016 - 5:33am
bottom line

In the wind zone, at and above treeline, a CONSIDERABLE avalanche danger exists. Human triggered avalanches are likely on steep, wind drifted slopes, especially those that face the north half of the compass, and particularly on slopes with an easterly component to their aspect. Any avalanche that breaks to weak, sugary snow near the ground will be deep and dangerous.

At treeline, in steep, mid elevation terrain, a MODERATE avalanche danger is found and human triggered avalanches are possible on steep slopes with recent deposits of wind drifted snow.

Lose the wind and you'll lose the problem. A LOW avalanche danger exists at lower elevations, particularly in wind sheltered terrain.
current conditions

Keep the refills coming! Another nice shot of snow stacked up yesterday with an additional 4"-6" across the range. A break in the active weather pattern this morning gives us clear skies, light winds, and temperatures in the low teens. Yesterday, southerly winds blew in the 20's and 30's, but died down around 1:00 this morning, switched to the west-northwest and are currently blowing 10-20 mph along the high ridges. Wind sheltered mid elevation terrain is your best best for finding deep, cold snow.

Trip reports and observations are found here.
recent activity

3'-5' deep and 200' wide, this slide was intentionally triggered Sunday on a steep, upper elevation, east facing slope by a very experienced backcountry rider. However, due to the tricky nature of the snowpack, the slide got a little out of hand as it broke wider and deeper than first anticipated. This slope avalanched to the ground during the Solstice storm and the snowpack structure prior to last weeks series of storms was weak and sugary. This is what we call a repeater.

Recent avalanche observations are found here.

See or trigger an avalanche? Shooting cracks? Hear a collapse? It's simple. Go here to fill out an observation.
Avalanche Problem 1
type aspect/elevation characteristics
LIKELIHOOD
LIKELY
UNLIKELY
SIZE
LARGE
SMALL
TREND
INCREASING DANGER
SAME
DECREASING DANGER
over the next 24 hours
description

Last weeks light, fluffy storm snow is now capped with a strengthening slab. Problem is... this will feel relatively stable and good to go under our skis, board, or sled. But as we know, strong snow on weaker snow is a scary combination in our mountains. We're dealing with what we call a peristent slab and it often tricks even very experienced people. As a matter of fact, several people were caught off guard Sunday as avalanches broke above them while they were well out on the slope. While I think today's avalanche conditions won't be quite as reactive, I know we've got a tricky setup and the best way to avoid the unknown is to avoid the problem. Today, you'll simply want to steer clear of steep wind drifted slopes, especially terrain with an easterly component to its aspect. Slopes that avalanched to the ground during the Solstice Storm are thin and weak and remain guilty until proven otherwise.

Big differance is snowpack depth and strength-

Where the snowpack is deep, shears breaking to weak snow near the ground are getting ragged and lack energy, suggesting a turn towards stronger snow.

Where the snowpack is shallow, it's a weak sugary mess. This snowpit is from a slope that avalanched during the Solstice Storm. Now a strong slab rests on top of this gong show, adding a layer of complexity to our current snowpack setup.
weather

Clouds and wind increase late today as yet another in a series of storms slides into the region. Temperatures rise into the low 30's and southwest winds ramp up by days end, blowing in the mid to upper 30's. Snow develops overnight and the southern end of the range should fair well initially, then the flow turns northwest late tonight and the North Slope kicks in. A good shot of snow is on tap Wednesday and Wednesday night, with a foot of snow possible by the time things wind down early Thursday.
general announcements

Remember your information can save lives. If you see anything we should know about, please participate in the creation of our own community avalanche advisory by submitting snow and avalanche conditions.   You can call me directly at 801-231-2170, email [email protected], or email by clicking HERE

This is a great time of year to schedule a free avalanche awareness presentation for your group or club. You can contact me at 801-231-2170 or email [email protected]. To register for the first in our series of on-the-snow sled specific classes you can register here.

The information in this advisory is from the US Forest Service which is solely responsible for its content. This advisory describes general avalanche conditions and local variations always occur.

The information in this advisory expires 24 hours after the date and time posted, but be will be updated by 7:00 AM on Wednesday, January 20th.