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Forecast for the Salt Lake Area Mountains

Evelyn Lees
Issued by Evelyn Lees on
Wednesday morning, January 27, 2016

The Avalanche Danger is CONSIDERABLE on all upper elevation slopes approaching 35 degrees and steeper. While deeper slides are most likely on steep, northwest through easterly facing slopes, they can be triggered in isolated places on southeast through westerly facing slopes. Smaller wind drifts and sluffs can still be triggered at the upper elevations.

Avoid steep, sunny slopes facing east through south through west where the avalanche danger could rise as high as CONSIDERABLE once the snow dampens from sun and daytime heating.

Safer terrain includes lower angle, wind sheltered slopes.

Low
Moderate
Considerable
High
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Learn how to read the forecast here
Special Announcements

There are still spaces in the Women’s Backcountry 101 avalanche class at Brighton (Feb 4/6) and the Women’s Snowbasin Avalanche Awareness class Feb (18/20). For more info on those classes and other education offerings through out the state, check out our Education Page.

Check out this January Avalanche Accident Blog from Spencer Logan, Colorado Avalanche Information Center.

Bruce has a Blog post about the Effectiveness of Airbags

Lose or find something in the backcountry? Go to nolofo.com to place a gear lost or found notice.

Weather and Snow

It’s a beautiful morning, with clear skies, light winds and warm temperatures. Most mountain locations are in the twenties, with teens in the valley bottoms where the cold air has pooled. The northwesterly winds are averaging in the 5 to 15 mph range. Many slopes are sun and wind crusted; the highest quality powder is on wind sheltered, northerly facing slopes.

Recent Avalanches

There were 3 human triggered avalanches yesterday breaking to the ground on depth hoar. Two, the Argenta headwall and Silver Fork headwall, were triggered by intentional cornice drops. The third, Holy Toledo, broke out on the 5th skier, who was carried and injured. These were on north to northwest facing slopes, and known or assumed to be repeaters. There was also a round of natural and human triggered wind slabs in Salt Lake and Ogden area mountains, with one person going for a ride in continuously steep 40+ degree terrain.

While our data base is incomplete, the heat map below shows the aspects and elevations of the avalanches we have recorded in Wasatch mountains this past week, showing almost all aspects have had significant avalanches.


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Avalanche Problem #1
Persistent Weak Layer
Type
Location
Likelihood
Size
Description

The largest, most dangerous avalanches today will be any slide breaking on facets – near the ground on NW through easterly facing slopes and midpack on the southerly through westerly facing slopes. Faceted weak layers can be found around the compass – on all aspects – at the upper elevations. However, slopes that have previously slid one or more times this year and refilled with snow are the most likely places to trigger a slide today, which are mostly on steep upper elevation northwest through easterly facing slopes.

Left: Holy Toledo, Mark White Right: Argenta Head wall, Colby Stetson photo


Avalanche Problem #2
Wet Snow
Type
Location
Likelihood
Size
Description

Abundant sunshine and another jump in temperatures today will increase wet avalanche activity. Cloud cover is the wild card - periods of high thin clouds could keep the sunny slopes cooler, yet allow the mid and low elevation northerly facing slopes to heat. (“greenhousing”) As the snow becomes damp, or you see roller balls and small sluffs, it’s time to get off steep sunny slopes.

Avalanche Problem #3
Wind Drifted Snow
Type
Location
Likelihood
Size
Description

The wind slabs will be more stubborn today. Avoid these denser, cracky and even hard drifts on steep slopes. Terrain key here – a ride in even a small slide can have a bad outcome if you hit trees, go off a cliff or end in a gully terrain trap. Winds could increase today along the highest ridgelines, so reassess your travel if they start drifting snow where you are.

Gobbler wind slab, natural. Fred Staff photo

Additional Information

Strong high pressure moving in will bring warming temperatures and light, northwesterly winds. 8,000’ highs will be near 40, 10,000’ highs near 30. Average winds speeds should remain below 15 mph, though speeds across the highest peaks could increase to 25 mph, with gusts to 40.

General Announcements

Remember your information can save lives. If you see anything we should know about, please participate in the creation of our own community avalanche advisory by submitting snow and avalanche conditions. You can also call us at 801-524-5304, email by clicking HERE, or include #utavy in your tweet or Instagram.

To get help in an emergency (to launch a rescue) in the Wasatch, call 911. Be prepared to give your GPS coordinates or the run name. Dispatchers have a copy of the Wasatch Backcountry Ski map.

Backcountry Emergencies. It outlines your step-by-step method in the event of a winter backcountry incident.

If you trigger an avalanche in the backcountry, but no one is hurt and you do not need assistance, please notify the nearest ski area dispatch to avoid a needless response by rescue teams. Thanks.

Salt Lake and Park City – Alta Central (801-742-2033), Canyons Resort/PCMR Dispatch (435)615-1911

Snowbasin Resort Dispatch (801-620-1017), Powder Mountain Dispatch (801-745-3772 x 123).

Sundance Dispatch (801-223-4150)

EMAIL ADVISORY If you would like to get the daily advisory by email you will need to subscribe here.​

DAWN PATROL Hotline updated daily by 5-530am - 888-999-4019 option 8.

Twitter Updates for your mobile phone - DETAILS

UDOT canyon closures: LINK TO UDOT, or on Twitter, follow @UDOTavy, @CanyonAlerts or @AltaCentral

Utah Avalanche Center mobile app - Get your advisory on your iPhone along with great navigation and rescue tools.

Powderbird Helicopter Skiing - Blog/itinerary for the day

Lost or Found something in the backcountry? - http://nolofo.com/

Ski Utah mobile snow updates

To those skinning uphill at resorts: it is your responsibility to know the resort policy on uphill travel. You can see the uphill travel policy for each resort here. IMPORTANT: Before skinning or hiking at a resort under new snow conditions, check in with Ski Patrol. Resorts can restrict or cut off access if incompatible with control and grooming operations.

Benefit the Utah Avalanche Center when you shop from Backcountry.com or REI: Click this link for Backcountry.com or this link to REI, shop, and they will donate a percent of your purchase price to the UAC. Both offer free shipping (with some conditions) so this costs you nothing!

Benefit the Utah Avalanche Center when you buy or sell on ebay - set the Utah Avalanche Center as a favorite non-profit in your ebay account here and click on ebay gives when you buy or sell. You can choose to have your seller fees donated to the UAC, which doesn't cost you a penny.

This information does not apply to developed ski areas or highways where avalanche control is normally done. This advisory is from the U.S.D.A. Forest Service, which is solely responsible for its content. This advisory describes general avalanche conditions and local variations always exist.
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