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Forecast for the Abajos Area Mountains

Dave Garcia
Issued by Dave Garcia for
Tuesday, February 14, 2023
Expect a rising avalanche danger from new and wind drifted snow over the next several days! Be alert to changing conditions and avoid steep slopes that have more than 6" of freshly deposited, wind drifted snow.
Human triggered avalanches are possible in shallow soft slabs of wind drifted snow.
A remote possibility also remains for triggering a deep avalanche on a weak layer of sugary, faceted snow at the base of the snowpack. You are most likely to encounter this problem on very steep, northerly facing slopes that have a shallower snowpack.
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Special Announcements
Have you been hearing how cell phones and such can interfere with your avalanche beacon? The "20/50 Rule" is that you want your beacon 20cm (8") away from other electronics while transmitting and 50cm (20") away from electronics while searching. Get the full scoop here.
Weather and Snow
An active period will bring snow to the mountains starting today and lasting through Wednesday.
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
In his travels to the Abajos on Friday, Eric found the full gamut of wind affected surfaces from crusted, to hard wind board, textured sastrugi, and finally, hard slabs of wind drifted snow. Conditions will be slightly improved by five inches of new snow that fell on Monday. Snow showers will continue today, with another 2-4" inches possible today and tonight. The new snow is accompanied by moderate WSW winds and shallow soft slabs of wind drifted snow are forming in the upper elevations of the Abajos. These slabs will be sensitive to the weight of a skier or rider. As the storm goes on, slabs of wind drifted snow will continue to develop and become bigger as the snow piles up and the Westerly winds blow.
Additional Information
If you are getting out in the backcountry, we'd love to hear what you're seeing. Please submit observations here. For the most recent snowpack observations click 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.
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