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Forecast for the Uintas Area Mountains

Craig Gordon
Issued by Craig Gordon on
Wednesday morning, March 10, 2021
While not widespread, today you'll find pockets of MODERATE avalanche danger above treeline in upper elevation terrain, especially on steep leeward slopes in the wind zone, facing the north half of the compass. Fresh snow and older wind drifts will react to our additional weight and human triggered avalanches are POSSIBLE. While more the exception than the rule, any avalanche that breaks to weak layers of snow near the ground will result in a deep, dangerous avalanche that'll instantly ruin your day.
Mid and low elevation terrain offers generally LOW avalanche danger. Remember- low avalanche danger doesn't mean no avalanche danger, so please continue practicing your safe travel rituals and make sure you carry and know how to use your avalanche rescue gear.... transceiver, shovel, and probe.
Low
Moderate
Considerable
High
Extreme
Learn how to read the forecast here
Weather and Snow
Nowcast-
And then... it snowed! I know... a crazy notion during the winter, but indeed it happened! Last nights storm delivered an evenly distributed 6" of low density snow across the range and light snow showers linger over the region this morning. Along with the cold front, temperatures cratered into the single digits and low teens where they sit this morning. Right around 03:00, west and northwest winds bumped into the mid and upper 20's. A shallow coat of white paint will go a long way to help out spirits and give a little cushion underfoot. Low angle slopes are gonna be the ticket.
Forecast-
Snow showers taper off early this morning and we should see partial clearing with temperatures barely cracking into the teens and low 20's. Winds generally remain light and northerly.
Futurecast-
Cool and unsettled weather continues late through the end of the week, though there's no big storms in sight.
Looking for real-time temps, snow, or wind?
Click here and then on the "western Uinta" tab for western Uinta specific, weather station network.
Recent Avalanches
Third hand information reported late Monday... this short, steep, heavily wind drifted slope near Hoyt Peak produced a rather large, sled triggered avalanche breaking 4'-6' deep x 400' wide, running 100' vertically.
Observations, trip reports, and avalanches found here.
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Avalanche Problem #1
Persistent Weak Layer
Type
Location
Likelihood
Size
Description
Strong snow on weak snow often displays false signs of stability because a slope may have many sets of tracks on it. But... a slope can still slide if someone hits a thin spot in the snowpack near a rock or bush hidden under the snow, like in the image above.
The good news is... where the snowpack is deep, it's happy in its own skin. However, snow is a curious medium and all we need to do is find one inconsistency or a shallow zone, maybe around a rock or bush, collapse the pack, and now we've got a bigger slide than we might've bargained for. So my safe travel strategy is to think about suspect terrain I want to continue avoiding and that includes steep, rocky terrain and slopes that avalanched near the ground earlier in the season. And here's something to consider... we've got a "go anywhere" base, so if you're getting into steep, technical terrain, remember that even a small slide can knock you off your ride, slam you into a tree, and throw a curve ball at your day.
Avalanche Problem #2
Wind Drifted Snow
Type
Location
Likelihood
Size
Description
Any bump in wind speed will instantly form shallow drifts along the leeward side of upper elevation ridges. Easily managed with terrain choices, simply lose some elevation and you lose the problem.
Additional Information
Dang... it's not looking like a very robust pattern :(
I will update this forecast by 7:00 AM tomorrow, Thursday, March 11th.
Your observations are important, so please let me know what you're seeing... click HERE and contribute to this amazing community based program
General Announcements
If you see or trigger an avalanche or just wanna let me know what you're seeing you can reach me directly at 801-231-2170 or [email protected]
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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