LCC Backcountry Closure: 10pm 3/8 to 8am 3/9 Lisa Falls to Superior for weapons testing Thursday morning. Two Trees to Grizzly Gulch open as is south side accessed from White Pine parking.
Tonight - Thursday 3/9 6:00 PM - This week the Utah Adventure Journal Speaker Series hosts Joe Grant. Last summer Joe did a self-powered link up of all of Colorado's 14,000ft peaks by bike and on foot. Starting at his home Joe rode more than 1,100 miles, ran/hiked more than 400 miles and summited 57 peaks all in 1 month. Joe will share the story of his adventure, the highs and lows, the gear, the logistics, and style he used to overcome the challenges of Colorado's high country. You can find more information about the presentation here.
Spring Special: We have a few donated Snowbird, Snowbasin, Solitude, and Brighton discount lift tickets left and have just lowered the price. Ski a day and benefit the Utah Avalanche Center! Order here.
The Wasatch Powderkeg will be held Friday and Saturday, Mar 10 and 11, at Brighton as a benefit for the Utah Avalanche Center, featuring a Ski Mountaineering Sprint race on Friday afternoon and a longer race Saturday with Race, recreation, and youth courses and divisions. There will also be Companion Rescue, Terrain Strategies, Splitboarding, Steep Skiing and Riding, and Mountaineering Techniques for Skiers and Snowboarders skills clinics Saturday taught by local pros. There will be a drawing for great gear including boots and winner's choice of skis or a splitboard mid-day Saturday. Details here.
Under mostly clear skies, temperatures this morning are above freezing at the mid elevations, and in the 20s at the upper elevations and in the canyon bottoms where cold air has pooled. The southwesterly winds peaked overnight at 10,000’, and are decreasing this morning – now averaging 10 to 15 mph. The highest peaks are averaging 35 mph.
The snow surface is “variable”, with the last of the cold, dry snow to be found on upper elevation north and northeasterly facing slopes, dotted with punchy wind slabs. The widespread breakable sun crusts at the lower elevations and on sunny slopes will soften later today, into thick sloppy snow.
Yesterday, avalanche activity in the backcountry was a mix of wet and dry. There were 2 large wet loose sluffs mid Canyon in Little Cottonwood, in steep south facing gullies, with more numerous small wet loose sluffs at the lower elevations. A surprisingly large wind slab was triggered on the north facing approach to Cardiac Bowl – about 150’ wide. Resort control work also triggered small to medium sized wind slabs at the upper elevations.
Cardiff Fork wind slab
