Avalanche Advisory
Advisory: Logan Area Mountains Issued by Toby Weed for Saturday - December 27, 2014 - 7:03am
bottom line

There are still areas with a CONSIDERABLE (level 3) avalanche danger, and dangerous persistent slab avalanche conditions still exist on some previously drifted upper and mid-elevation slopes. Increasing west winds and drifting this afternoon and overnight tonight will cause an increasing danger of wind slab avalanches.

  • Careful snowpack evaluation, cautious route finding, and conservative decision-making will be essential for safe backcountry travel.
  • Audible collapsing indicates persistent slab instability.
  • Avoid steep drifted upper and mid-elevation slopes.

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special announcement

We will offer an Avalanche Awareness Class, for beginners and as a refresher for those already with some training, including a Field Day in the backcountry. Class begins on January 8 (evening) and all day Saturday January 10. Call Paige at 435-757-2794 for more information.
current conditions

The Tony Grove Snotel reports 60 inches of total snow at the 8400' site containing 134% of average water for the date, and its 6 degrees this morning. The UDOT Hwy 89 Logan Summit weather station is reading negative 8 degrees and light down canyon winds currently. We'll find fantastic powder conditions again today, but uncertainty and complexity of the avalanche conditions still call for caution. One party observed audible collapsing in west facing terrain in the Franklin Basin Area yesterday afternoon, which is a Red Flag. So, despite an outward appearance of fairly good stability, dangerous avalanche conditions likely persist on some of the most tempting steep slopes in the backcountry. Still a good idea to stick to the powdery meadows, lower angled, and/or south facing terrain.
recent activity
  • A fairly widespread natural avalanche cycle occurred at upper elevations in the Logan Zone with the moist Solstice Storm.
  • A rider triggered a good sized persistent slab avalanche Tuesday in the Rodeo Grounds on the east side of Logan Peak. Looks like he escaped the 2 to 3 foot deep by around 200' wide avalanche, which failed on weak snow that was on the surface during the December dry spell.
  • A backcountry skier, the third to descend, triggered, was caught, carried. completely buried, seriously injured, and rescued by his experienced party in the mountains above Salt Lake City on Christmas Eve... Accident Report
  • Yesterday, a skier triggered and was caught and carried and partially buried in an avalanche near Park City on a slope that already had numerous tracks in it.

Visit our Backcountry Observations Page for more information.....

A sled triggered avalanche in the Rodeo Grounds on Tuesday, 12-23-2014
Avalanche Problem 1
type aspect/elevation characteristics
LIKELIHOOD
LIKELY
UNLIKELY
SIZE
LARGE
SMALL
TREND
INCREASING DANGER
SAME
DECREASING DANGER
over the next 24 hours
description

During the Solstice Storm, heavy wind-blown snow overloaded a weak layer consisting of faceted snow and surface hoar that was on the snow surface before the storm arrived. Triggered avalanches are possible in some terrain steeper than about 30 degrees, and you still might remote trigger avalanches from a distance or below. The danger will be most pronounced on drifted slopes facing the northern half of the compass. Audible collapsing or whoompfing noises indicate dangerous persistent slab avalanche potential in nearby avalanche terrain.
Avalanche Problem 2
type aspect/elevation characteristics
LIKELIHOOD
LIKELY
UNLIKELY
SIZE
LARGE
SMALL
TREND
INCREASING DANGER
SAME
DECREASING DANGER
over the next 24 hours
description

Strong south winds Christmas Eve drifted significant snow in exposed terrain, creating stiff wind slabs on the lee sides of the major ridges and in and around terrain features like gullies and cliff bands. These drifts will be now hidden by a foot or so of fresh snow and softer drifts. Expect increasing west winds today and southwest winds tonight ahead of the next bout of Pacific storminess. Any drifting of the light powder snow currently on the surface will increase the potential for fresh wind slab avalanches. As usual, its best to avoid steep drifted terrain.
weather

We'll see a bit of sunshine today before winds shift from the southwest this evening and clouds begin moving in in advance of the next round of Pacific storminess. Expect high temperatures at 8500' in the mid teens, sub-zero wind chills, and increasing moderate west winds today, Snow is likely to begin late tonight, with 2 to 4 inches of accumulation possible by morning, increasing southwest winds, and single digit temperatures. We are likely to see decent accumulations in the mountains on tomorrow, with 5 to 9 inches of fluffy snow in the forecast. Snow will taper off to showers Sunday night and continue through Monday, with a bit of a break in the weather midweek.

Check out our one-stop weather page........HERE

general announcements

You can now receive advisories by email for each region in the state including Logan.  Go here for details.

 Get your advisory on your iPhone along with great navigation and rescue tools.......  Utah Avalanche Center mobile app 

Please submit snow and avalanche observations from your ventures in the backcountry HERE. You can call us at 801-524-5304 or email HERE, or include #utavy in your Instagram or Tweet us @UAClogan. To report avalanche activity in the Logan Area or to contact the local avalanche forecaster call me, Toby, at 435-757-7578. 

I'll regularly update this advisory on Monday, Wednesday, Friday, and Saturday mornings by about 7:30.   This advisory is produced by the U.S.D.A. Forest Service, which is solely responsible for its content. It describes only general avalanche conditions and local variations always exist.