US Forest Service Manti-La Sal National Forest

 Introduction:  Good morning, this is Max Forgensi with the USFS Manti-La Sal Avalanche Center with your avalanche and mountain weather advisory.  Today is Thursday, December 14th, at 7:30AM. This advisory will expire in 24 hours.

 

CHECK OUT OUR NEW GROOMING EQUIPMENT HERE.  

 

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.

Please give us your observations from the field HERE.  The more observations we get, the better this forecast can be. 

 

  

General Conditions:

Precipitation is staying to our North for the next couple days.  The current westerly flow is not favoring us.  Weather will start to change on Friday as the next Pacific storm starts into our area…warm temps and breezy conditions will precede the event and we should see snow falling by Saturday afternoon and into Sunday. 

Decent coverage and moderate temperatures have kept back country skiing conditions fair except for on those open Southwesterly slopes that gain the most solar radiation.  Be weary of stumps and logs lurking just under the snow and you might hit an occasional rock. 

If your looking to go skate skiing, the GROOMED Nordic and Skate Ski trails will be up and running after LUNA’s (Lower Utah Nordic Alliance) volunteer groomer training this weekend.  Go out and enjoy the snow!

 

Mountain Weather: (At 10,500’) –
Today: Partly cloudy, with a high near 38. West wind between 5 and 10 mph.
Tonight: Partly cloudy, with a low around 23. West southwest wind between 5 and 10 mph.
Friday: Partly cloudy, with a high near 42. Breezy, with a south southwest wind between 10 and 20 mph, with gusts as high as 30 mph.
Friday Night: Partly cloudy, with a low around 24. Breezy, with a south southwest wind 20 to 25 mph decreasing to between 10 and 15 mph. Winds could gust as high as 40 mph.

                                                                                                                                                                                                                                           

Weather Station/ Location

Snow Depth (HS):  in./cm

New Snow (HN) in./cm

7:00 a.m. Temp (F)

Current Observations:  Wind, 48 hour snow

Geyser Pass Trailhead (9,600’): (snotel link)

14.5”

 

28

68 cm at our Trailhead Study Plot

Geyser Pass

~”

 ~

Powder

Gold Basin and South Mountain

90 cm

 ~

~

POWDER

Pre-Laurel Peak Station (11,705’)

N/a 

N/a 

22.4

10 mph gust to 20 from NNW

 

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

 

It has been four days since our last storm and temperatures have been creeping over freezing at 9,600’ for the past couple days.  The natural avalanche cycle is over, although human-triggered avalanches are still possible.  The La Sal Mountains continue to have a shallow snow pack and in most places, the lower half of it are faceted, poorly bonded grains.  Natural avalanches have failed on East-North-West aspects.  Westerly aspects have probably gained some strength due to solar radiation and will not as reactive as they were just after Sunday’s storm.  North and East aspects just don’t get any solar gain these days and they also have a buried surface hoar layer up to 11,000’.   These North-East aspects is where you should be concerned with today.  For today the La Sal Mountains will have an Avalanche Danger of MODERATE.  Be careful on steep N-E aspects, and at all elevations.

    Enjoy the snow and we will update this tomorrow morning.