Forecast for the Provo Area Mountains

Drew Hardesty
Issued by Drew Hardesty for
Wednesday, February 15, 2023
Areas of MODERATE avalanche danger exist for pockety soft slabs of wind drifted snow at the mid and upper elevations. Human triggered avalanches are possible. Owing to the north to northeast winds, look for unusual wind loading patterns.
The best bet is finding wind and sun sheltered terrain today.
Low
Moderate
Considerable
High
Extreme
Learn how to read the forecast here
Weather and Snow
A storm system that primarily affected southern Utah is now barrelling off to the east, keeping us under a cold north to northeasterly flow. Skies are overcast with a flurry or two lost in the shuffle from the departing storm. Mountain temperatures are in the single digits with moderate winds out of the north and northeast,
For today, we'll have mostly cloudy skies, sloowwllyy diminishing winds from the north....and frigid temps in the single digits. Clearing skies by evening with a slow warming trend through early weekend. Another storm looks lined up for later Sunday into President's Day.
Recent Avalanches
Find all the recent observations HERE.
Ad
Avalanche Problem #1
Wind Drifted Snow
Type
Location
Likelihood
Size
Description
Pockets of fresh soft slabs of wind blown snow will be littered across the compass at the mid and upper elevations. Be on the lookout for drifts with unusual loading patterns, owing to the moderate to strong NE winds. I would anticipate drifts to be more notable on north to west to south facing slopes...with drifts cross-loaded mid-slope. Shooting cracks are indicators of localized instability.
Additional Information
I cherry picked Timp Divide's snotel site along the alpine loop to look at how we're shaping up here in mid-February. As you can see, we are well above 'normal' (191%) and way above last year. The medium to long range models keep us in a fairly active weather pattern for the next 7-10 days+.
General Announcements
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.