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Observation: Foothills

Observation Date
1/7/2024
Observer Name
ZSmith
Region
Salt Lake » Foothills
Location Name or Route
Avenues Foothills
Red Flags
Red Flags
Heavy Snowfall
Wind Loading
Cracking
Collapsing
Avalanche Problem #1
Problem
Wind Drifted Snow
Trend
Same
Problem #1 Comments
Winds were blowing hard out of the NW this morning. Pretty much scoured the foothills and created hardening wind slabs on the leeward sides of ridges. These slabs were very reactive and we got some impressive shooting cracks and collapses both from above and from below the slabs. See first picture for an example. Not really enough snow to be consequential at this point but could become an issue if the coming weeks storms deliver.
Avalanche Problem #2
Problem
New Snow
Trend
Decreasing Danger
Problem #2 Comments
The foothills went from basically no snow to some snow over the last couple of days.
Snow Profile
Aspect
East
Elevation
5,900'
Comments
Rather than brave the traffic snarls in the canyons, I decided to take a field trip to the foothills to see what coverage looked like. Snow depth ranged from 0-12 inches and the winds really moved snow around. See second picture. Not much to ski at this point and what was ski-able was shallow and sharky. Conditions should improve over the next week.
Today's Observed Danger Rating
Moderate
Tomorrows Estimated Danger Rating
Moderate
Coordinates