Our Spring Campaign is in full swing, and there are two great ways to support forecasting, awareness, and education across Utah:
Donate to our Spring Campaign, or
Bid on items in our Spring Auction. Every dollar donated helps keep the backcountry community on top.
Today will be action-packed with two great events happening in Salt Lake and Park City! Join Craig Gordon at Park City Brewing at 6pm for a State of the Snowpack.
RSVP here!
Looking to travel light and fast through terrain, but still be safe? Join the UAC's Director Emeritus Chad Brackelsberg and guide Billy Haas at Chappell Brewing in Salt Lake for an engaging presentation and open discussion on smart packing strategies and the risks we take.
Sign up here!Skies are clear.
With a storm developing off to the west, winds have picked up overnight from the south and are blowing 10-15 with gusts to 20.
Mountain temperatures are wicked hot with overnight "lows" in the upper 30s to low 40s. Highs reached into the upper 40s to low 50s yesterday.
Today look for sunny skies and increasing high cirrus by late afternoon. Winds will remain generally light (less than 15mph) from the southwest. Mountain temps will be a touch warmer than yesterday. Your window for safe travel on supportable crusts will be earlier and more narrow than it has over the last couple of days.
Thursday will be just a touch cooler but with more cloud cover and moderate winds from the southwest. Blessed relief, if not salvation, arrives Saturday with much cooler temps, if not a momentary return to winter. In truth, the models hint at a somewhat active weather pattern for the week.
The wet snow shed cycle has begun. Yesterday went off with widespread natural wet avalanching on many steep solar aspects and even some low and mid-elevation northerly facing couloirs. These were primarily wet loose avalanches leaving debris piles easily large enough to bury a person. Cornices, too, were tender and we heard of a party that was involved with a cornice fall on Superior. It sounds like there was a subsequent slide and some lost gear but were otherwise ok. The party did call Alta Central (801-742-2033) to report the slide but we haven't heard back from them.
Two interesting avalanches yesterday that stepped down into old weak faceted snow near the ground. One was triggered by "light explosives" in upper LCC that was 4' deep and 50' wide in very steep, very rocky, unsupported terrain. The other was triggered by a cornice fall along the
Cascade ridgeline the Provo area mountains that ripped out 3.5' deep and 200' wide into old depth hoar on the ground. Both paths have avalanched previously this year (repeater avalanches).
