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Forecast for the Skyline Area Mountains

Brett Kobernik
Issued by Brett Kobernik on
Wednesday morning, December 18, 2024
The avalanche danger on the Manti Skyline is rated MODERATE.
The danger will slowly decrease over the next few days.
Continue to watch out for and avoid recently formed drifts especially on steep upper elevation slopes that face northwest through southeast.
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Weather and Snow
Current Conditions: The recent periods of strong wind has turned the snow surface into a very irregular and inconsistent mess. Can you still go out and have fun? You bet. You just have to search for some good conditions. Temperatures were around 30˚F on Tuesday. They've stayed right around there overnight in the higher locations but cooled off in the canyon bottoms. The wind has been from the west and has slowed down over the last 8 hours.
Mountain Weather: We are officially into another stagnant ridge of high pressure. Expect mostly clear skies with high temperatures in the upper 30s and even low 40s into the weekend. Wind from the west will bump slightly in speed today but won't get really strong. There's really no chance for snow until after Christmas.
Recent Avalanches
I found a few natural avalanches that released due to wind transporting snow and forming large drifts and slabs over the weekend. These demonstrate just the type of situation that you'll want to avoid today:
Pleasant Creek, 3rd large path
Pleasant Creek, BBQ Bowl
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Avalanche Problem #1
Wind Drifted Snow
Type
Location
Likelihood
Size
Description
The wind has drifted a lot of snow over the last 5 days. The drifts and slabs that formed were sensitive enough in some areas that they cracked and released naturally. Many of them seemed stubborn and wouldn't move even after being molested by snowmobiles. A lot of these drifts and slabs formed on top of weak sugary faceted snow from earlier in the season. This makes things very tricky and is the biggest reason you should continue to avoid them. It is very difficult to determine which slabs and drifts will release and which won't.
Additional Information
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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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