UDOT PLANNED AVALANCHE CLOSURES!!

Observation: Moab

Observation Date
2/24/2019
Observer Name
Garcia/Grote
Region
Moab
Location Name or Route
Gold Basin/Tele Gold
Weather
Sky
Few
Wind Direction
West
Wind Speed
Calm
Weather Comments
Morning clouds quickly gave way to sunny skies. Winds were mostly calm with just the slightest breeze from the west, no snow was transported by the wind today. High temps in the low 20's.
Snow Characteristics
Snow Surface Conditions
Powder
Melt-Freeze Crust
Snow Characteristics Comments
A thin melt freeze crust has developed on South and West aspects from abundant sunshine yesterday and today. Most other slopes still hold light, dry powder. Skiing conditions remain fantastic.
Red Flags
Red Flags
Recent Avalanches
Poor Snowpack Structure
Red Flags Comments
I hesitated to click the recent avalanches box, as they are a few days old now. But we spent a good part of the day investigating the slides around Tele Gold. Also spotted a recent looking slide in Exxon's. Not sure if that one was reported with the last round of natural activity, but it appears to have run during the same cycle. Poor snowpack structure can be found on just about every aspect.
Avalanche Problem #1
Problem
Wind Drifted Snow
Trend
Decreasing Danger
Problem #1 Comments
Winds have stayed calm for a solid two days now. The likelihood of triggering a wind slab is decreasing. However, the wind slabs that formed with the last storm will still be sensitive to the weight of a skier for a couple more days. We spotted plenty of drifted areas today that we would not trust.
Avalanche Problem #2
Problem
Persistent Weak Layer
Trend
Same
Problem #2 Comments
Buried persistent weak layers seem to exist on most aspects depending on elevation. Over the past few days, myself and other observers have found weak snow on South and West facing slopes. We have been forced to say no to these slopes, or keep our slope angles low. Shallow slopes on these aspects seem to be where we are finding the weak snow right now. In addition to all of this, North and East facing slopes are still holding the December facets, and some near surface facets that were buried with all the recent snow. With all of the recent loading, slopes that haven't avalanched seem to be gaining strength. However, myself and others have not been very confident getting into avalanche terrain. As Eric has stated in his forecast, careful slope by slope analysis is crucial right now before committing to anything. Currently I have the most faith in areas with the deepest snowpack.
Snow Profile
Aspect
Northeast
Elevation
10,800'
Slope Angle
44°
Comments
Today we skied Tele Gold and this was a good chance to check out some of the recent avalanche activity. There was a series of crowns across the upper part of Tele Gold. It seems the slides that ran off Tuk No came over the cliffs and triggered a wind loaded area in Tele Gold. The debris ran all the way to the bottom where we usually hang out and put skins on. This snow profile was taken right at a crown that was about four feet deep. We dug all the way to the ground, and were shocked by the total depth of 330cm. I think this depth is influenced by the location directly below Tuk No/Gravel Pit. Previous avalanches have hit this slope this year and deposited snow. Also, a good amount of sluffing occurs off these slopes and deposits on Tele Gold. Furthermore, this slope has seen heavy wind loading the past two weeks. All of these factors have resulted in super deep snow at the site of this crown. Because of this, this snow profile is not representative of places most people would be skiing. The take home point from this profile is to see the structure of the slab, weak layer, and bed surface of the recent avalanche in Tele Gold. The slab itself is stiff, definitely a hard slab/wind slab containing 1 Finger to Pencil hard snow. The avalanche ran on a very thin layer of facets. The weak layer did not immediately stick out, but we were able to identify a thin layer of 1mm facets on the bed surface.It is also important to note the bottom of the snowpack in this location had a significant amount of vegetation. The open air space around the vegetation caused facets to grow from 90cm down to the ground. This looks shocking in the snow profile graphic, but I would not expect to find this structure on similar slopes. To get a better idea of the size/location of this avalanche check out the photos in Eric's forecast.
Photo 1: Ed standing by the crown where we dug. Photo 2: Shovel for size reference. Photo 3: My pack is on the bed surface, the slab is everything above Ed's head, he is standing in the pit (deep!). Photo 4: The vegetation in the bottom of the pit, and the reason for the facets from 90cm to the ground.
Photo 1: A recent avalanche in Exxon's. The depth looks very similar to the other recent slides in this cycle. Photo 2: An obviously wind loaded slope that we avoided. Photo 3 + 4: A couple scenic shots.
Out of the wind zone I think there is a moderate danger of triggering an avalanche on a persistent weak layer.
Today's Observed Danger Rating
Moderate
Tomorrows Estimated Danger Rating
Moderate