The avalanche danger is LOW today. However, Low doesn't mean NO, so watch for small fresh wind drifts at upper elevations in addition to small, wet snow avalanches as temperatures rise today.
Special AnnouncementsThe Wasatch Powderkeg is going on this weekend at Brighton Resort. We are offering on-snow clinics to help refresh your mountain skills or learn new ones. This is a great way to prepare yourself and your partners for those big spring objectives! Click here for the full list of clinics and event details. Voile, La Sportiva, Scarpa and Camp will all be offering free gear demos!
The Utah Avalanche Center greatly values our longtime partnership with our world-class resorts and is blowing out the remaining donated lift tickets from Snowbird, Snowbasin, Sundance, and Nordic Valley with reduced prices. Every penny you spend benefits the Utah Avalanche Center.
Check out our Garage Sale! Chock full of sweet backcountry gear - you can find the goods on our Facebook page here.
Weather and SnowTemperatures have warmed a few degrees overnight and currently range from the upper 20's F to upper 30's F. Yesterday's West/SouthWest winds have diminished and are now blowing in the teens with some gusts in the 20's mph.
Recent AvalanchesThe only item of interest from yesterday's observations were reports of small pockets of fresh wind drifts at upper elevation ridgelines in the Salt Lake mountains. These were shallow (1-8" thick) and isolated. [Photo R. Wyatt]
For today, two items to watch:
1. Pay attention to fresh wind drifts along upper elevation ridgelines. Although these are mostly isolated, they have formed on top of a hard surface, so if you did trigger one of these small wind slabs in very steep terrain, consider the consequences of where you may end up if you are unable to get off of the bed surface.
2. We are expecting warm temperatures today, so small wet sluffs are possible as the sun warms the snow surface.
UAC Moab forecaster Eric Trenbeath has been actively writing this past season, and discusses persistent weaknesses in the March issue of Backcountry Magazine. Eric has also written a nice piece in Ascent on identifying slab avalanche problems.
Remember, risk is always inherent in mountain travel. Even with a Low Danger, avalanches can still happen in isolated places.
For weather, today you can expect temperatures in the low 50's at 8000', and mid to upper 30's at 10000'. Winds are out of the W/SW and will blow in the low to mid teens at mid elevations, with stronger winds at 11000' blowing in the mid 20's mph with gusts in the thirties. High thin clouds will provide filtered sunshine. A weak storm may brush by us and provide a few snowflakes overnight.
Models are currently forecasting stormy conditions for later this weekend. We'll keep you updated.
Remember your information can save lives. If you see anything we should know about, please help us out by submitting snow and avalanche conditions. You can also call us at 801-524-5304, email by clicking HERE, or include #utavy in your tweet or Instagram.
To get help in an emergency (to request a rescue) in the Wasatch, call 911. Be prepared to give your GPS coordinates or the run name. Dispatchers have a copy of the Wasatch Backcountry Ski map.
Backcountry Emergencies. It outlines your step-by-step method in the event of a winter backcountry incident.
If you trigger an avalanche in the backcountry, but no one is hurt and you do not need assistance, please notify the nearest ski area dispatch to avoid a needless response by rescue teams. Thanks.
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DAWN PATROL Hotline updated daily by 5-530am - 888-999-4019 option 8.
TWITTER Updates for your mobile phone - DETAILS
UDOT canyon closures: LINK TO UDOT, or on Twitter, follow @UDOTavy, @CanyonAlerts or @AltaCentral
Utah Avalanche Center mobile app - Get your advisory on your iPhone along with great navigation and rescue tools.
Powderbird Helicopter Skiing - Blog/itinerary for the day
Lost or Found something in the backcountry? - http://nolofo.com/
To those skinning uphill at resorts: it is critical to know the resort policy on uphill travel. You can see the uphill travel policy for each resort here.
Benefit the Utah Avalanche Center when you shop from Backcountry.com or REI: Click this link for Backcountry.com or this link to REI, shop, and they will donate a percent of your purchase price to the UAC. Both offer free shipping (with some conditions) so this costs you nothing!
Benefit the Utah Avalanche Center when you buy or sell on ebay - set the Utah Avalanche Center as a favorite non-profit in your ebay account here and click on ebay gives when you buy or sell. You can choose to have your seller fees donated to the UAC, which doesn't cost you a penny.
This information does not apply to developed ski areas or highways where avalanche control is normally done. This advisory is from the U.S.D.A. Forest Service, which is solely responsible for its content. This advisory describes general avalanche conditions and local variations always exist.
