We need your help. In an effort to increase awareness and prevent future fatalities we need to reach more people with our daily avalanche forecasts, expand the Know Before You Go program, and increase the number of on-snow avalanche courses. Please consider a donation to the UAC to help us raise $25,000 by April 8. Show your support of the UAC by making a donation at
https://utahavalanchecenter.org/donate
The Tony Grove Snotel at 8400' reports about 6 inches of moist new snow, with .7" SWE in the last 24 hours. It's ?ºF this morning and there is 90" of total snow with 104% of average SWE for the date. It's 17ºF at the 9700' CSI Logan Peak weather station, and west winds are currently averaging around 20 mph. Heightened avalanche conditions exist at all elevations in the backcountry today, and rapid solar warming will likely create dangerous conditions on sunny slopes, with natural wet avalanches becoming likely on some steep slopes with midday heat.
High pressure aloft across the Great Basin will generate a substantial warming trend during the first half of the week. An active spring weather pattern will return for the latter half of the week and into the first half of the weekend. It will be sunny and increasingly warm in the mountains today, with high temperatures at 9000' expected be around 39ºF, with 7 to 11 mph south-southwest wind. It will be partly cloudy tonight with a low temperature around 25º F, and 15 mph south-southwest winds. It will be sunny and warm again tomorrow, with high temperatures expected to climb to about 42ºF, with 15 to 22 mph south-southwest wind.
There were quite a few small triggered avalanches in the Wasatch Range yesterday, but the headlines are dominated by an accident in Cardiac Bowl, in Big Cottonwood Canyon, east of Salt Lake City. 6 people were caught and carried by a shallow but broad avalanche. The outcome could have been much worse, but 2 people were partially buried and one was injured. See Report
HERE
Saturday a skier triggered a scary 1 to 2 foot deep and 150' wide avalanche running on a buried persistent weak layer near Danish Pass. The avalanche ran on a 32 degree, north-northeast facing slope at around 8800' in elevation. Report is
HERE
Observers reported easily triggering several shallow soft slab and loose avalanches involving fresh storm snow at upper elevations in the Central Bear River Range on Friday.