In partnership with the Brighton Ski Patrol, we'll be giving a free avalanche awareness presentation tonight focusing on why shallow snowpack winters, just like this year, are so dangerous once it does start snowing.
Skies are mostly cloudy, temperatures in the the teens, and light snow is falling. A weak, little system slid through the region last night, adding a thin coat of white paint and delivering 3" of snow. West and southwest winds just starting increasing in the past hour or so and are blowing in the 20's and 30's along the high ridges. The past few storms aren't block busters, but they have vastly improved riding and turning conditions. Heads up... go lightly. With only 18"-24" of total snow on the ground, it's still super thin out there.
Above are 24 hour temperatures and snow depth from Trial lake along with winds and temperatures from Windy Peak. More remote Uinta weather stations are found here
Mark Staples and the Back Country Institute (BCI) crew were near Double Hill yesterday, whilst Ted and I were in Upper Moffit Basin. In either case, our trip reports and findings can be seen here.
With it's easy access, Wolf Creek Pass is a seamless pre or post work grab. However... just 'cause you can see your rig from the ridge, doesn't mean the snowpack is good to go or shares your same level of stoke.
No recent avalanche activity to report. Ted did find this old pocket near Gold Hill yesterday and commented that slopes which avalanched earlier this season are quite shallow and weak. While yesterday's storm didn't push us over the edge, these are the types of slopes that could easily come back to life with additional snow, water, and wind. (Scroggin photo)