Fall Auction is now live! Check it out now
Ad
The National Forest Service Logo
icon-add Observation
Forecasts
Logan Ogden Salt Lake Provo Uintas Skyline Moab Abajos Weather Archives How to read the forecast
Observations & Avalanches
Submit Observation NEW - Observations Explorer All Observations Avalanches Fatalities Place Names Map Archives
Education
Avalanche Awareness Develop Skills On-Snow Courses Resources and Tutorials
Events
Store
About
Contact Who we are Core Values Staff Board of Directors Past Forecasters Sponsors Annual Reports Sign In
Blog
icon-add Observation
Donate / Join

Observation: Superior

Observation Date
2/17/2022
Observer Name
Zack Little
Region
Salt Lake » Little Cottonwood Canyon » Superior
Location Name or Route
Superior
Weather
Sky
Clear
Wind Direction
Northeast
Wind Speed
Light
Weather Comments
Ridge-top winds light gusting to moderate, calm off the ridge-tops.
Snow Characteristics
New Snow Depth
8"
New Snow Density
Low
Snow Surface Conditions
Powder
Dense Loose
Damp
Snow Characteristics Comments
Average new snow depths from 7-8" of light density powder snow, with wind drifts 3-4 feet in depth along the ridge-tops. By 9:30AM snow surfaces on southerly aspects were becoming damp and exhibiting wet loose avalanche characteristics.
Red Flags
Red Flags
Heavy Snowfall
Cracking
Rapid Warming
Red Flags Comments
Isolated cracking along ridge tops, mostly near cornice lines. Isolated soft windslab development on the lee aspect of upper elevation ridge tops, however we did not observe any notable slab avalanche activity.
Avalanche Problem #1
Problem
New Snow
Trend
Decreasing Danger
Problem #1 Comments
approximately 8" of new light density snow was poorly bonded to a slick, hard bed surface. Loose dry avalanches were entraining lots of snow and moving fast but not far, although I imagine this changed as the surface snow warmed. these avalanches were certainly enough to knock you off your feet, and the bed surface would make self arrest nearly impossible. As this snow settles I would expect it to sluff with less power, however it will still be suceptible to warming in the next few days.
Avalanche Problem #2
Problem
Wet Snow
Trend
Increasing Danger
Problem #2 Comments
Snow surfaces became damp on the south aspect by 9:30-10:00am and were exhibiting wet loose characteristics. These would likely bring more power and consequence to the dry sluffing we found earlier in the day.
Comments
We started our day around 6:00am from the hellgate condominiums parking lot(8400') with the car thermometer reading 11F. We traveled up to cardiff pass and found new light density snow with depths 6-8", relatively unaffected by wind below the ridgetops. limited wind slab development on the ridge tops meant occasional cracking, however it was mostly a non-issue with the large majority of the new snow being right-side-up. Early in the morning the loose dry avalanche issue was manageable with careful skiing, but significant in consequantial terrain. My concerns later in the day were the rapid warming of the surface snow, and the effect this warming would have on fresh cornices along ridge tops, which could easily initiate a loose dry avalanche. The skiing was good, if you could stay on top! As for tomorrow, there was significant AST and transport observed today, which would raise my index of suspicion for wind slab given the forecasted winds. warming will be an issue tomorrow as well.
Today's Observed Danger Rating
Moderate
Tomorrows Estimated Danger Rating
Moderate
Coordinates