UDOT PLANNED AVALANCHE CLOSURES!!

Forecast for the Uintas Area Mountains

Craig Gordon
Issued by Craig Gordon for
Wednesday, November 25, 2015

The avalanche danger is LOW and human triggered avalanches are unlikely this morning. As the storm develops later today, the danger will rise to MODERATE and human triggered avalanches will be possible, especially on steep, wind drifted slopes facing the north half of the compass

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Moderate
Considerable
High
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Learn how to read the forecast here
Special Announcements

The avalanche danger will be on rise overnight and into Thanksgiving.

Weather and Snow

Southerly winds are blowing in the 20's and 30's along the ridges, temperatures are in the low to mid 20's, and clouds are streaming into the region, all ahead of our first decent shot of snow since the beginning of the month. With just about a foot of total snow depth, riding and turning options are still limited to road rides or low angle grassy meadows. Probably a good day to get chores done and wait 'til some new snow starts to stack up before hitting the mountains.

Our western Uinta weather station network is up and running. Click here for real time snow,winds, and temperatures.

Dan Gardiner was hiking around the Duchesne Ridge and submitted these pictures which illustrate the need for more snow.

Recent trip reports and observations are found here.

Recent Avalanches

No recent avalanche activity to report, but we are posting observations from the backcountry on a daily basis now. See or trigger an avalanche? Shooting cracks? Hear a collapse? It's simple. Go here to fill out an observation.

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Avalanche Problem #1
Wind Drifted Snow
Type
Location
Likelihood
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Description

For the moment, avalanche conditions are pretty straight-forward and the danger is generally LOW. The biggest hazard out there right now is slamming into an obstacle barely hidden under our shallow snow pack. However, a change is gonna come as a good looking storm is setting it's sights on northern Utah. As such, the avalanche danger will be rising the next 24 hours. Of course, the avalanche hazard is going to be dependent on the weather and if we get even a couple inches of snow during the day, the danger will rapidly rise. As snow stacks up and the winds have something to work with, the most likely place to trigger a slide later today is gonna be limited to steep, wind drifted terrain at and above treeline, especially slopes facing the north half of the compass. Remember- it's super shallow out there right now and triggering even a small slide could take you for a nasty ride through rocks and stumps.

It's a shallow snowpack for sure, but thankfully there's a little bit of body or structure this year... it's not just a weak sugary mess like we've seen in previous years.

Additional Information

Windy and warm today with highs reaching into the low 30's. Southerly winds are gonna be a nuisance, blowing in the 30's and 40's with gusts in the 60's and 70's along the high peaks. Light snow showers develop during the day, but the bulk of the storm arrives late in the day and snow should begin in earnest by about supper time. Winds die down and temperatures crash into the teens as the cold front arrives tonight. Snow lingers into Thanksgiving and I'm thinking storm totals in the 8"-10" range are likely, perhaps a foot of snow in some favored areas. Unsettled weather with light snow showers remains in place through the week.

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 Thursday November 26th.