US Forest Service Manti-La Sal National Forest

Introduction:  Good morning!  This is Dave Medara with the USFS Manti-La Sal Avalanche Center with your avalanche and mountain weather advisory.  Today is Thursday Dec. 22nd at 8:30 a.m. This advisory will expire in 24 hours.

 

WE ARE STARTING TO FILL UP OUR AIARE LEVEL 1 AND LEVEL 2 CLASSES BEING HELD IN THE LA SALS THIS YEAR.  THE LEVEL 1 IS FEBRUARY 3RD-5TH (FRI-SUN), WHILE OUR LEVEL 2 IS MARCH 3RD-6TH  (FRI-MON).  CALL (435) 636-3363 FOR MORE INFORMATION AND TO SIGN UP.  EACH CLASS IS LIMITED TO 12 STUDENTS.  TUITION GOES DIRECTLY TOWARDS THE FRIENDS OF THE MANTI-LA SAL AVALANCHE CENTER.

 

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:

 

It seems that the best bet for winter recreational opportunities in the La Sal Mountains over the holiday weekend will be limited to sledding and cross country skiing on the road and trails. There is a lot of ground hazard out there and punji stakes in wooded areas so heads up! Conditions for classic cross-country and skate skiing on the roads are excellent as well as the snowmobiling on the roads. But be warned, Backcountry skiing conditions are horrible, and the cover is extremely thin for snowmobiling and backcountry touring unless you’re feeling very adventurous.

            The slight chance of snow in our forecast for the next couple of days does not look like enough to change the situation very much, so be sure to include a snow dance in your Christmas celebrations. Temperatures should drop again to better freezing levels so at least the ice conditions in the sloughs will improve! The Grand County Road Department did plow the road, although it is still icy and snow packed in spots.  4WD and chains are recommended. 

 

Current Conditions: (click location for latest data)

Geyser Pass Trailhead (9,600’):  5.2” at the SNOTEL.  39 degrees at the trailhead at 7:00 a.m. 

Gold Basin and South Mountain:  20” of settled snow on the ground. 

Pre-Laurel Peak Weather Station (11,705’):  Friday was an exciting day for the Weather Station.  We have all the equipment in place and we made CONTACT!  There are a few bugs to be worked out before we have a reliable link.  Baby steps on this one!

 

Mountain Weather: (At 10,500’)

Today...Mostly cloudy with a slight chance of snow in the morning...Then a slight chance of rain in the afternoon. Highs in the 40s. West winds 10 to 15 mph. Chance of precipitation 20 percent.
Tonight...Partly cloudy in the evening then becoming mostly cloudy. Lows in the 20s.
Friday...Mostly cloudy in the morning then becoming partly cloudy. A 20 percent chance of snow. Highs 35 to 45. Northwest winds 10 to 15 mph.

 

Avalanche Conditions: (Link to the International Avalanche Danger Scale here)

 

For those who really dare to go out there…. Here is the avi report. As one might expect, on all the shady aspects, East thru NW facing there is extremely weak snow on the ground with a depth of anywhere from 8” to 24” or so. There are some higher density wind slabs on top of this weak faceted snow in some areas, particularly above treeline or in otherwise wind affected areas. On SE thru West facing slopes expect to find a collections of sun crusts, wind crusts and weak faceted snow, grass and rocks, all with-in a 6-12” layer of snow. There may be some supportable crusts to ski out there on wind packed ridgelines, but make sure you’re on your rock skis.

 These conditions make for a pretty negligible avalanche hazard throughout most of the range except on steep E thru NW facing slopes where weak, unconsolidated snow could accumulate into a loose snow avalanche or some odd pocket of wind slab hasn’t broken down into faceted snow yet. The BOTTOM Line is a MODERATE hazard on high elevation East through NW facing slopes and LOW hazard throughout the majority of the range