We are deeply saddened to confirm two avalanche fatalities. The first involved a 38 year old man in Main Porter Fork of Mill Creek Canyon who went missing on Saturday. The second avalanche fatality occurred Tuesday and involved a 54 year old man off Davenport Hill into Silver Fork of BCC. Both individuals were traveling alone in the backcountry. Please know, our hearts are heavy for the family and friends of these gentlemen.
Many thanks to those who responded to these accidents: search and rescue teams from AirMed, LifeFlight, Utah Dept Public Safety, Utah Department of Transportation, Salt Lake County Search and Rescue, Wasatch Backcountry Rescue, Alta Ski Area, and members of the Utah Avalanche Center.
Nowcast- While some were sleeping, some were working... out (or so I hear:), yet kept a watchful eye on a quick hitting storm sliding through the region. Delivering 4" of snow and .50" H2O, it's a moist, warm system and temperatures start their day in the low to mid 20's. Westerly winds blowing in the 40's and 50's are the morning buzz-kill. But don't let your heart be troubled... riding and turning conditions continue to improve as even more snow stacks on top of the dense, heavy Christmas storm. With a mostly supportable base underfoot, riding and turning conditions turned from zero to hero... and who doesn't like a hero?
Forecast- Look for mostly cloudy skies and an additional 3"-5" of snow stacking up for the morning commute. Temperatures are gonna feel unseasonably mild with highs climbing into the low 30's and overnight lows dipping into the mid 20's. Westerly winds will be obnoxious, blowing in the 30's and 40's near the high peaks.
Futurecast- High pressure briefly moves in late tonight into Friday, delivering a sunny, warm day to wrap up the work week. But clear skies are short-lived as yet another fast moving storm system makes its way through the area Saturday into early Sunday. Not a particularly strong storm, but a quick reset with a couple inches of snow. The active pattern continues into the early part of the upcoming week, though with storminess developing on the right coast, we might be drying out on the left coast for a minute or two.
Above is an image of a very well-connected avalanche on Currant Creek Peak that slid during the New Years Eve storm cycle. Breaking 6-8 feet deep and 1000 feet plus feet wide, this is the type of avalanche dragon we're dealing with today.
From Strawberry Rez to Evanston, an aerial view of the postage stamp revealed the affirmation that 2025 got the party started early and went out with a bang. Of note, a widespread avy cycle in the likely suspects, but also unsuspecting slopes like treed terrain and mid slope pockets, particularly on the south half of the range which tipped the scales with 3" SWE.
No shortage of natural avalanche activity, human triggered avalanches, and even a
close call. Yup, avalanche activity has been widespread across the range. Nearly all avalanches are failing on old, faceted snow buried up to 4’-6' deep on slopes facing the north half of the compass. Recent avalanches are breaking hundreds of feet wide and annihilating the entire season's snowpack.
Huge thanks to everyone for helping us out by providing very timely observations, insight, and honesty. Remember... your intel helps save lives, so please keep the info rollin' in! All those obs and trip reports along with info from neighboring Utah forecast zones are found
here.
