UDOT PLANNED AVALANCHE CLOSURES!!

Forecast for the Abajos Area Mountains

Eric Trenbeath
Issued by Eric Trenbeath for
Friday, December 23, 2022
Special Announcements
We will not be issuing daily forecasts with danger ratings this season. We simply do not have enough information for this level of detail. We will be keeping an eye on the snowpack and will post a detatiled summary of conditions on Saturday mornings. Mid-week updates will be provided as weather conditions dictate.
Weather and Snow
NW winds began to back off after midnight after blowing in the 25-35 mph range for most of the day yesterday. Cloud cover overnight has kept things warm. Today look for gradually decreasing clouds, light NW winds, and high temps in the mid 20's. No white Christmas this year I'm afraid as warmer temps and sunny skies reign through the weekend. A return to a stormy pattern mid next week is currently being advertised.
NWS Forecast for the Abajo Mountains
Snow totals and temps at Buckboard Flat (8924')
Snow totals and temps at Camp Jackson (8858')

Snowpack Summary and General Conditions
Matt Cozart was up again yesterday and sent another great report on conditions. The bottom line is that the overall snowpack structure is poor. Weak, faceted snow exists in the lower pack. This problem has been compounded by recent wind loading. Strong winds yesterday blew and drifted snow and creating fresh slabs in wind exposed terrain. Avoid steep slopes that show signs of recent wind drifting. Wind drifts are recognizable by their smooth, rounded appearance, and cracking is a sign of instability. Wind drifts form on the leeward sides of ridge crests and terrain features such as gully walls and subridges. Another red flag sign of instability is collapsing, or whumphing. This indicates that the underlying poor snowpack structure is incapable of supporting the weight of the overlying snow. If you observe this, you know you have an unstable situation and steep terrain should be avoided.
In most cases, snow cover is still a little too thin to access avalanche terrain, but all steep, wind drifted slopes that have enough snow to ride are suspect, and human triggered avalanches are possible in these areas.
If you are getting up into the Abajos, please let us know what you see out there.
For more on the current state of the snowpack, see the video below.
Additional Information
If you are getting out in the backcountry, we'd love to hear what you're seeing. Please submit observations here. You can also send an email to [email protected] or give me a call with anything noteworthy, especially avalanches! 801-647-8896
General Announcements
This forecast is from the U.S.D.A. Forest Service, which is solely responsible for its content. This forecast describes general avalanche conditions and local variations always occur.