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Forecast for the Logan Area Mountains

Toby Weed
Issued by Toby Weed for
Sunday, April 3, 2022
With generally stable snow conditions, avalanches are unlikely and the danger is LOW in the backcountry today. Get an early start, so you can get off the snow early before it is softened by seasonal midday warmth. Avoid and stay out from underneath overhanging cornices. If you start sinking into soft saturated snow, it's time to change your route, get off and out from under slopes steeper than 30°, or head home.
Use normal caution.
Low
Moderate
Considerable
High
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Weather and Snow
Freezing temperatures last night and in the last few nights put a hold on the meltdown and formed a pretty solid and thick melt-freeze crust on top of the saturated snow. In this refrozen state, wet snow is stable and avalanches are generally unlikely. High angled April sun and seasonal daytime warmth will soften up the snow surface by midday. If you start sinking into wet snow or observe signs of wet snow instability, it's time to reevaluate your route so that you avoid steep terrain.

The 8400' Tony Grove Snotel reports 29°F, and there is 57 inches of total snow at the site, containing 72% of normal SWE. North-northwest winds are blowing around 15 mph at the 9700' CSI Logan Peak weather station, where overnight temperatures were several degrees below freezing, and it's 24°F this morning.
  • Expect sunny skies today, with high temperatures at 8500' around 43°F and 10 to 15 mph northwest winds, veering from the southwest in the afternoon.
  • It will be partly cloudy tonight ,with low temperatures around 24°F and 10 to 15 mph winds blowing from the southwest.
  • Tomorrow, we'll see increasing clouds and southwest winds in the morning and a good chance of snow showers in the afternoon, with 1 to 3 inches of accumulation possible on upper elevation slopes. Expect high temperatures around 43°F, with 20 to 25 mph west-southwest winds increasing to 31 to 36 mph in the afternoon.
  • Snow showers are likely to continue tomorrow night, with 2 to 4 inches of additional accumulation possible and a low temperature around 20°F. It will be windy, with 35 mph west-southwest winds and much higher gusts.
  • Fair and mostly sunny weather is likely beginning Wednesday and lasting through the end of the work week.
Recent Avalanches
Conditions are quite a bit different this weekend than last, with much colder temperatures and much more stable snow in the backcountry. Last weekend's exceptionally warm weather caused a fairly widespread natural wet avalanche cycle in the Logan Zone, with several large wet slab and numerous wet loose avalanches observed.
A large natural wet loose avalanche from last weekend in Three Terraces, upper Providence Canyon, looks like it was triggered by a cornice fall overrunning the slope.
Check out all the recent backcountry observations and many recent avalanche reports from across Utah HERE.
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Avalanche Problem #1
Normal Caution
Type
Location
Likelihood
Size
Description
As daytime temperatures rise and the high angled sun warms the snow surface today, it is possible people could trigger wet avalanches on slopes steeper than 30°. Cooler mountain temperatures and below freezing temperatures overnight created a supportable surface crust that is stabilizing the sloppy wet snow under it. But, the high angled sun and seasonally warm daytime temperatures will soften saturated surface snow again, and although fairly unlikely, wet loose and perhaps even isolated wet slab avalanches will be possible on steep slopes in the backcountry today.
  • Get an early start so you can reach your objective and head down before the snow becomes soft and less stable.
  • If you start sinking into saturated snow, it's time to reevaluate your route, stay off and out from under slopes steeper than 30°, and/or head home.
  • Wet slushy snow is generally unstable on steep slopes.
Avalanche Problem #2
Cornice
Type
Location
Likelihood
Size
Description
Avoid and stay out from underneath overhanging cornices, especially during the heat of the day. The cornices are sagging and buckling due to the heat, and some are naturally calving off large chunks... In some cases, the warmth has softened the previously drifted snow, and people could trigger fairly large cornice falls. Cornice falls could trigger wet avalanches on steep slopes below.
Additional Information
  • Now is a great time to practice your avalanche rescue skills. Thanks to the generous support of Northstar, the Franklin Basin Beacon Training Park is up and running. The park is located directly west of the parking lot and is open for anyone to use. All you need is your beacon and probe. Please do not dig up the transmitters.
  • Always follow safe backcountry travel protocols. Go one person at a time in avalanche terrain, while the rest of your party watches from a safe area. (practice anytime while traveling on or under backcountry slopes steeper than 30°)
  • Check your avalanche rescue equipment, change your batteries, and practice often with your backcountry partners.
    Check slope angles, and to avoid avalanche terrain stay off of and out from under slopes steeper than 30° and adjacent slopes. Video Here
General Announcements
Special thank you to Polaris and Northstar...Video Here
Who's up for some free avalanche training? Get a refresher, become better prepared for an upcoming avalanche class, or just boost your skills. Go to https://learn.kbyg.org/ and scroll down to Step 2 for a series of interactive online avalanche courses produced by the UAC.
  • Please submit your observations from the backcountry HERE.
This information does not apply to developed ski areas or highways where avalanche control is normally done. 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.