We are in the process of finalizing a report about the March 9th avalanche fatality in the Uintas. Thank you for your patience, and we will publish the final report in coming days.
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Would you believe me if I told you it was still snowing?
The Cottonwoods and Park City areas picked up 3-5" of cold smoke overnight, with mid-LCC reporting 12" overnight. We're now pushing storm totals to 40-60" (4.0"-4.50" SWE) since mid-week.
Mountain temperatures are in the single digits but winds are currently playing the spoiler. 11,000' winds have averaged 35-45mph with gusts to 60mph the last few hours. Even many mid-elevation anemometers are blowing 20-25mph with gusts to 40mph.
We should be seeing "peak" snowfall and winds this morning. We'll start to dry out (if only for a day or two) and possibly see a touch of blue by afternoon. Winds will lose steam and average 15mph along the 10k ridgelines.
Tuesday will be a bit of a break ahead of the next prolonged storm system that will bring at-times heavy snowfall Wednesday afternoon through Friday. 1-2' can be expected. The next storm is forecast for late weekend.
Off the charts at Snowbird. Almost 200% of "average".
NRCS pageSkiers triggered a few shallow soft slabs in the new snow in Neffs and on Kessler Peak yesterday. These were up to a foot deep and 50' wide. One skier was briefly caught and carried in the west couloir of Kessler Peak. Just up canyon, a likely natural cornice-fall triggered a fresh soft slab on the steep Silver Fork headwall 2' deep and 150' wide.
Avalanche control work along the southern end of the Park City ridgeline pulled out a 2-4' deep avalanche on a lightly-trafficked and heavily wind loaded northeast facing slope at 9900'.
***The Outlier - on
Saturday, a snowmobile remotely triggered a significant avalanche just south of the Ant Knolls in upper Snake Creek (above Heber/Midway). (pics 1, 2) This avalanche ripped out 2' deep and 700' wide on a steep easterly facing slope at 9400', failing on a thin layer of surface facets, and buried by the mid-week storm(s). It left large debris piles and barely overran the groomed Cummings Parkway track below.
What is troubling is that this was the only avalanche I noted in the vicinity; that I experienced no cracking or collapsing, and snow tests did not necessarily send a bunch of red flags. How should this affect terrain choices for today?
