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Forecast for the Salt Lake Area Mountains

Brett Kobernik
Issued by Brett Kobernik for
Wednesday, December 26, 2012

There is an overall MODERATE avalanche danger this morning. It is important to note that the danger will be on the rise during the day and into Thursday as we add new snow. Watch for any fresh drifts along the upper elevation ridges on west through north through east facing slopes. Avoid being in avalanche runnout zones if the snowfall rates spike this afternoon.

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Weather and Snow

Southerly winds are increasing along the higher ridgelines but the mid elevations remain fairly unaffected still this morning. It should probably be noted that some stations have a slight east component to them. Temperatures are in the low teens and we've received a trace to an inch of new snow already with light snowfall continuing.

Recent Avalanches

Wow. Christmas was another epic powder day for those who weaseled out of their holiday duties. The 12 to 18 inches of fresh snow was very well behaved despite some drifting that happened late in the storm which did form some new drifts. On the steepest slopes, ski cutting would produce sluffs and some shallow manageable soft slabs. These weren't running all that fast and quickly stopped as they started into the transition zone. No collapsing was noted in observations.

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Avalanche Problem #1
Persistent Weak Layer
Type
Location
Likelihood
Size
Description

There is an abundant amount of loose snow available for wind transport and the bump in wind speeds this morning presents our primary avalanche concern. With hints of an east wind direction, we will want to watch for loading that may occur on westerly facing slopes, something that is not as common for us with the prevailing west wind that we usually have. In themselves, these fresh drifts should be manageable for the experienced travelers. Prod any fresh drifts you see to get a feel for the sensitivity. Slope cuts should be used prior to diving into any steep slope.

Avalanche Problem #2
New Snow
Type
Location
Likelihood
Size
Description

Lack of widespread avalanching and lack of collapsing in backcountry observations gives me enough confidence to rate our persistent slab issue in the thin snow cover areas a MODERATE danger. However, we need to be very suspicious of these thinner snowpack areas whenever we add more weight through new snow and or wind loading. It's best to continue to avoid these slopes while they're being loaded and see how they behave after the event. Collapsing one of the buried weak layers would produce an unmanageable and the most dangerous type of avalanche. This concern is the most unlikely but greatest threat to serious injury or worse.

Avalanche Problem #3
New Snow
Type
Location
Likelihood
Size
Description

We're in for snowfall during the day today. While I don't think it will snow so hard where we start to have natural avalanche activity, you should always be thinking what actions you'll take if there is a spike in the snowfall rates. Any spike for more than an hour or so should make you avoid being below any longer running avalanche paths.

Additional Information

Southerly winds will continue for a while this morning and then taper off. Temperatures will be in the mid teens. Snowfall rates should increase mid day and we're expecting 6 to 12 inches as the storm continues into tonight. This is not as an energetic storm as Monday's but it does have a longer duration. As the trough moves through, we'll switch to a northwest flow. We should see periods of snow into Thursday night with additional accumulations. An inch of water is expected with the new snow and densities should be fairly low producing quite a bit of volume.

General Announcements

Go to http://www.backcountry.com/utah-avalanche-center to get tickets from our partners at Ala, Beaver Mountain, Brighton, Canyons, Deer Valley, Park City, Powder Mountain, Snowbasin, Snowbird, Solitude, Sundance, and Wolf Mountain. All proceeds benefit the Utah Avalanche Center.

If you trigger an avalanche in the backcountry - especially if you are adjacent to a ski area – please call the following teams to alert them to the slide and whether anyone is missing or not. Rescue teams can be exposed to significant hazard when responding to avalanches, and do not want to do so when unneeded. Thanks.

Salt Lake and Park City – Alta Central (801-742-2033), Canyons Resort Dispatch (435-615-3322)

Ogden – Snowbasin Patrol Dispatch (801-620-1017)

Powder Mountain Ski Patrol Dispatch (801-745-3773 ex 123)

Provo – Sundance Patrol Dispatch (801-223-4150)

Dawn Patrol Forecast Hotline, updated by 05:30: 888-999-4019 option 8.

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Daily observations are frequently posted by 10 pm each evening.

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UDOT canyon closures UDOT at (801) 975-4838

Wasatch Powderbird Guides does daily updates about where they'll be operating on this blog http://powderbird.blogspot.com/ .

Remember your information can save lives. If you see anything we should know about, please participate in the creation of our own community avalanche advisory bysubmitting snow and avalanche conditions. You can also call us at 801-524-5304 or 800-662-4140, or email by clicking HERE

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For a print version of this advisory click HERE.

This advisory is produced by the U.S. Forest Service, which is solely responsible for its content. It describes only general avalanche conditions and local variations always exist. Specific terrain and route finding decisions should always be based on skills learned in a field-based avalanche class.

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