UDOT PLANNED AVALANCHE CLOSURES!!

Observation: Guardsman Pass area

Observation Date
1/5/2019
Observer Name
B
Region
Salt Lake » Big Cottonwood Canyon » Guardsman Pass area
Location Name or Route
Guardsman Pass
Weather
Sky
Overcast
Wind Direction
Southwest
Wind Speed
Moderate
Weather Comments
Warm overnight with cloud cover coming in early in the morning. No green-housing observed, yet ambient temperatures and penetrating solar allowed for warming on southerly facing slopes up to 9000. Light to Moderate winds were getting down into the lower-mid elevation typically protected areas with gusts producing Moderate wind blown in the limited snow available for transport. Temperatures did not appear to get as warm as on Friday, yet out of the wind it felt quite mild. At 1830 at 8000 feet it is still 38 degrees.
Snow Characteristics
Snow Surface Conditions
Dense Loose
Wind Crust
Melt-Freeze Crust
Damp
Snow Characteristics Comments
Extremely variable snow surfaces out there with very limited soft settled dense old powder to be found. Zipper crusts on southerlies are mixed with abundant wind crusts and slabs. Of note, the widespread SH observed on Friday took a big hit with the temperatures from the past two days as well as todays winds.
Red Flags
Red Flags
Recent Avalanches
Wind Loading
Poor Snowpack Structure
Red Flags Comments
Snow pits at 9000 feet on WSW and NNE had identical HS at around 75 cm, yet structure was drastically different. NNE aspect indicated poor snowpack structure with 7 cm of basal facets. See photo of pit profile. WSW snow pit had a more consolidated homogeneous right side up snowpack, and test results were all negative.
Avalanche Problem #1
Problem
Wind Drifted Snow
Trend
Increasing Danger
Problem #1 Comments
No significant slabs observed in the limited areas traveled today, yet early observations obviously indicated multiple incidents of wind loading and hard slab development, as well as accidents. Forecast for additional snow and significant wind appear to indicate a rising/escalating danger for Sunday.
Avalanche Problem #2
Problem
New Snow
Trend
Increasing Danger
Problem #2 Comments
Storm Slab potential appears likely and with the contributing factors of wind loading this problem may be an issue by mid day on Sunday. As well, additional loading for new snow and wind most likely will promote the need to put Persistent Slab back on the problem list by the end of the day Sunday and into Monday if the forecast verifies for substantial water weight added to the isolated areas holding weak faceted layers. And, this may include those outlying areas outside of the upper Cottonwoods with shallow faceted snowpacks, as well as any possible areas that held onto the widespread weak surface snow that was observed as late as yesterday afternoon.
Today's Observed Danger Rating
Moderate
Tomorrows Estimated Danger Rating
Considerable