Manti-La Sal Avalanche Center

US Forest Service Manti-La Sal National Forest

Introduction:

Good Morning! This is Evan Stevens with the USFS Manti-La Sal Avalanche Center with your avalanche and mountain weather advisory. Today is Wednesday, December 10th, 2003 at 7:30 A.M

General Conditions:

One word: great. I keep having to remind myself that it is only the beginning of December. Storm totals were 16-20”, and have settled quite a bit now. However, look for great powder skiing, riding and snowmobiling. Southerly aspects may have a bit of a zipper crust from yesterday’s sun. Base depths range from 27” at Geyser Pass Trailhead, 36” in Gold Basin, and near 50” at around 11,000’. The Grand County Road Crews did a great job of plowing the road yesterday, but take it slow as it is snow packed, and 4WD or chains may come in handy. Currently it is 21 degrees at the trailhead.

Mountain Weather:

The sun should shine most of the day, with clouds increasing and highs in the low 30’s. Winds will be blowing a bit from the SW at 10-15mph. Tonight will be mostly cloudy with a low in the teens and SW winds at 10mph. Thursday brings us a chance of snow showers as a weak system breaking up over the Pacific Coast spits some energy in our direction. Highs will be in the 20’s with light winds.

Avalanche Conditions:

Although we did see some formation of weak sugary faceted snow in our cold snap a week or two ago, it was followed by an extremely warm period a few days later which managed to put a bit of strength back into the snow before this storm. Yesterday I witnessed very few signs of instability, no cracking and no collapsing, with only a few sluffs in the upper elevation areas. However, our continued cold conditions will prevent the new snow on the shady aspects from stabilizing, which will keep the new snow instabilities a bit reactive, a graupel layer about a foot down being of the most concern. Southerly aspects received a fair bit of sun and warmth yesterday, keeping things quiet there today. Upper elevation peaks and ridges have gotten their traditional sand blasting during the last storm so are a bit rocky still. The main areas of concern now are the shady aspects (NW-E) near and just above treeline, and upper elevation areas that are away from the ridges and peaks where the avalanche danger is MODERATE with pockets of CONSIDERABLE on slopes steeper than 35 degrees. In open shady areas below treeline the avalanche danger is MODERATE on slopes steeper than 35 degrees.

Nordic and Skate Skiing:

Wait a few days as the new snow will make things slow.

Public Announcements:

We still need volunteers and observers! Call us at the office for more info, 259-7155 for more info, or 636-3363 after hours.

Safety Tip of the Day:

Always check the battery power in your beacon. Check your beacon and your partner’s beacon ranges at the trailhead to ensure they are working properly when the time comes.