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Forecast for the Salt Lake Area Mountains

Nikki Champion
Issued by Nikki Champion on
Wednesday morning, February 12, 2020
Today, most terrain has a generally LOW avalanche danger and it is becoming increasingly more difficult to trigger an avalanche. A MODERATE avalanche danger exists for triggering avalanches involving shallow slabs of wind drifted snow on isolated terrain features on upper elevation slopes facing Southwest, South, and Southeast.
Cornices along the ridgelines should also be approached with great caution.
Remember a primarily low avalanche danger, doesn’t mean “no avalanche danger”. Continue to evaluate snow and terrain carefully.
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Special Announcements
Discounted lift tickets - Thanks to the generous support of our Utah ski resorts and Ski Utah, all proceeds from these ticket sales go towards paying for avalanche forecasting and education! Get your tickets here.
Looking to improve your avalanche skills? We are offering a Backcountry 101: Introduction to Avalanches class at Powder Mountain February 14-15.
Interested in learning more about this most recent avalanche cycle? State of the Snowpack a Discussion of the Recent Historic Avalanche and Weather Event in Little Cottonwood Canyon” with UAC Forecaster Trent Meisenheimer, Forecaster Mark Saurer with UDOT, and Mike Wessler University of Utah PHD Candidate in Atmospheric Science. Join us this Thursday at Black Diamond Store 3900 South 7:00pm - 8:30pm
Weather and Snow
This morning, mountain temperatures are in the mid-teens F at trailheads, and close to 10 F at ridgetops. At most elevations winds are Northwesterly, averaging in the mid to upper teens mph, with gusts near 30 mph. At upper elevation ridgetops, near 11,000 ft, winds are Northwesterly and averaging above 45 mph with gusts near 70 mph. Snow has just begun to lightly fall, with no accumulation yet.
Today, winds should remain Northwesterly and decrease by 9 am this morning. The winds will average in the mid to upper teens mph, with gusts near 30 mph. Temperatures will be in the mid-20s F, and the skies will be overcast or broken with a few flurries throughout the day bringing up to 2 inches of snow to the mountains.
Looking forward, the next significant storm is expected later Sunday through Monday as the weather pattern amplifies across the western continental united states.
The backcountry currently hosts a variety of supportable crusts, making travel and riding fast and efficient.
Recent Avalanches
No new recent avalanches reported in the backcountry.
A full avalanche cycle report, from last weekend's impressive cycle, will come out later this week, stay tuned.
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Avalanche Problem #1
Wind Drifted Snow
Type
Location
Likelihood
Size
Description
Last night the Northwesterly winds increased, with gusts up to 69 mph, these winds will have drifted any remaining soft snow that was available for transport into stubborn shallow slabs of wind drifted snow on upper elevation southwest, south, and southeast facing terrain. These will be primarily isolated to the upper-most ridgelines, but also look for them on the lee sides of terrain features such as sub-ridges, rock buttresses, and gully walls.
Today continue to look for slopes with any signs of wind drifted snow, such as cracking, hollow noises, and pillow-shaped snow and avoiding those slopes.
Cornices: Additionally, this past weekend storm added heft to the existing cornices. Last weekend's storm, in combination with the high overnight gusts, will cause these cornices to get closer to their tipping point. As the temperatures begin to climb, remember that these cornices often break much further back than expected, so give them a wide berth whenever traveling near ridgelines.
Additional Information
Over the next few days keep an eye on this structure, and watch for the development of weak faceted snow beneath the crust which could pose a problem for our snowpack in the future. Read Mark's observation HERE, where he talks about the snow surface at Mt. Nebo, and how that will play into the next storm system.
Areas of the Ogden mountains suffered more greatly with the rime/freezing rain crust. Travel conditions are greatly diminished, particularly on the east side of the Eden valley. Avalanche conditions are currently LOW there, they may prove to be interesting up there in the coming weeks.
General Announcements
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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.
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