| During the month of April, Mark Miller will donate $75 to the charity of your choice (5 to chose from, including the Utah Avalanche Center!) Mark Miller Subaru has raised over $300k in the previous 6 Do Good Feel Good events. More Info here |  |
| Advisory: Moab Area Mountains | Issued by Eric Trenbeath for Friday - February 13, 2015 - 7:29am |
|---|
|
bottom line The avalanche danger is generally LOW at this time but low danger doesn't mean no danger. With daytime heating the potential for wet slide activity exists on sun exposed slopes. There also remains an isolated possibility for triggering a buried persistent slab on steep shady aspects in more extreme upper elevation terrain, particularly in rocky areas that have a thin shallow snowpack.
|
 |
current conditions
With warm sunny days and a mostly stable snowpack, conditions remain good for simply cruising around the mountains, enjoying the beautiful weather, and perhaps bagging a peak. In my travels yesterday I observed corn-like conditions on sun exposed aspects at mid elevations.Though conditions remain variable, settled, creamy, re-crystallized "powder" can be found on sheltered wooded slopes and on some upper elevation bowls. Elsewhere look for a variety of wind and sun crusts on exposed aspects. High elevation, wind exposed terrain has been scoured down to the rocks in some areas and some southerly aspects are melted out to the ground. Ridge top winds overnight have been light from the NE picking up into the teens about 5:00 a.m. It is currently 32 degrees on Pre Laurel Peak though temps dipped to 29. It is currently 26 degrees in Gold Basin. La Sal Mountains Current Weather Wind speeds and temperature at 11,700' on Pre-Laurel Peak. New snow totals and temperature at Geyser Pass Trailhead. New snow totals and temperature in Gold Basin. Abajo / Blue Mountains. Low snow conditions continue to plague the Abajo Mountains. Winds and temperature on Abajo Peak. Snow total at Buckboard Flat.
|
 |
recent activity
|
| type | aspect/elevation | characteristics |
|---|
|
|
LIKELIHOOD
 LIKELY
UNLIKELY
SIZE
 LARGE
SMALL
TREND
 INCREASING DANGER
SAME
DECREASING DANGER
|
|
description
The avalanche danger is generally low at this time but as always, maintaining awareness of current and changing conditions is paramount for safety in the mountains and here are a couple of things to remain aware of. Wet slides: Continued warm temperatures and sunny skies mean it will be important to remain on the lookout for sloppy snow conditions on sunny aspects. If signs of instability such as sloppy wet snow, pinwheels, or wet point releases present themselves, it means it is time to stay off of and out from under steep, sun exposed slopes. Persistent Slab: In general we have reached a point where conditions are "weak but stable" and the chances of triggering a persistent slab are unlikely. Nevertheless, there still may be isolated areas where it is possible to trigger a persistent slab. Areas where you may find this problem are on upper-mid to upper elevation slopes steeper than 35 degrees that have a NW-N-E aspect, particularly in areas of rocky terrain that have a thin shallow snowpack. |
 |
weather Warm, mostly sunny, spring-like conditions will continue through the weekend. A weak cold front will affect our area Monday into Tuesday bringing us a slight chance of snow and much colder temperatures. High pressure begins to build after that with a return to drier conditions later in the week. Today: Sunny, with a high near 45. North northeast wind around 5 mph becoming northwest in the afternoon. |
| general announcements
Grooming Conditions: Trails are scheduled to be groomed Mondays and Fridays. Observations: If you are out and about, I would love to know what you are seeing. Please post your observations here. EMAIL ADVISORY If you would like to get the daily advisory by email you will need to subscribe here. Benefit the Utah Avalanche Center when you shop from Backcountry.com or REI: Click this link for Backcountry.com or this link to REI, shop, and they will donate a percent of your purchase price to the UAC. Both offer free shipping (with some conditions) so this costs you nothing! Benefit the Utah Avalanche Center when you buy or sell on ebay - set the Utah Avalanche Center as a favorite non-profit in your ebay account here and click on ebay gives when you buy or sell. You can choose to have your seller fees donated to the UAC, which doesn't cost you a penny. This advisory is from the U.S.D.A. Forest Service, which is solely responsible for its content. This advisory describes general avalanche conditions and local variations always exist. This advisory will be updated on Thursday, January 22. |
_2.jpg)
