Introduction: Good
Morning! This is Evan Stevens with the
USFS Manti-La Sal Avalanche Center with your avalanche and mountain weather
advisory. Today is Sunday, December
5th, 2004 at 7:00 a.m.
To see past advisories check out the ARCHIVE. To see current conditions go to our WEATHER PAGE. To see photos go to the AVIPHOTOS page.
General Conditions:
A surprise burst of snow has left us with about 2”-4” of new
accumulations in town and the mountains.
The snow should dissipate quickly and leave behind some enjoyable skiing
and riding on mostly settled powder and the light new accumulations on the
surface. On sunny lower elevation and
sheltered aspects there is a bit of a crust, so stay high and/or shady for the
best snow conditions. Above treeline
locations will also have a bit of wind affected snow to deal with. Currently it is 21 degrees and snowing at
the Geyser Pass Trailhead with 22-26” of snow on the ground and it is 18
degrees with winds out of the WSW at 15-20mph at 11,700’; Gold Basin has about 40-46” of settled snow
on the ground.
Mark your calendars for December 6th, at 7-8 p.m. when
the Southeastern Utah Winter Search and Rescue Team puts on a SKI SWAP! If you are trying to sell any type of
snow related equipment or clothing or are looking for some equipment yourself,
this is going to be the best place to do it in Moab for this winter
season.
Mountain Weather:
The surprise burst of snow should end in the morning hours. The details:
Today. Snow then a slight chance of snow
in the afternoon. Highs in the 20s.
Southwest wind around 10 mph.
Tonight. Mostly cloudy with a 20 percent chance of snow. Lows 10 to
20. South southwest wind between 10 and
15 mph.
Monday. Mostly cloudy with a 30 percent chance of snow. Highs in the
20s. West southwest wind around 5 mph.
Avalanche Conditions:
After the benign weather this week, we have just a little bit of
new snow to make the skiing and riding conditions better and only complicate
the avalanche conditions slightly. What
remains from last weekend’s big dump is only a few pockets of unstable snow,
which are becoming more settled as time wears on. The snowpack’s weak layers are not very reactive anymore, which
is good news. Our main concern now is
the weak
faceted surface snow from this week that is now getting buried by the light
snow accumulations. However, today’s
load is very small, and the minor winds should only create small sensitive wind
slabs at and above treeline close to ridges and on cross-loaded slopes and
gullies. The bottom line is an
avalanche danger of MODERATE on slopes
steeper than 35 degrees on E-N-W aspects that did not avalanche in the last
storm cycle and on recently (being today) loaded slopes at and above treeline.
Be wary of the steep and shady spots below treeline where the persistent weak
layers are even more dramatic, but the snow load is not as large, meaning your
weight might really make the difference.
All other areas have a LOW avalanche danger.
Nordic and Skate Skiing:
An enjoyable day for you
classic Nordic skiers with just a little bit of new snow to break trail
in. Skate skiing will be compromised
due to the fact the track is not very wide and the new snow.