Ogden Avalanche Advisory

Forecaster: Brett Kobernik

BOTTOM LINE

Danger by aspect and elevation on slopes approaching 35° or steeper.
(click HERE for tomorrow's danger rating)


Danger Rose Tutorial

There is a mostly MODERATE avalanche danger in the backcountry today. This means HUMAN TRIGGERED AVALANCHES ARE POSSIBLE. The most dangerous areas are the very steep northerly facing slopes at the mid and upper elevations, especially in areas with a thinner snowpack where you might get an avalanche to break into old weak snow. Keep in mind that this persistent weakness is much more difficult to deal with then just new snow instabilities. Lastly, watch for wet snow that may become unstable at the lower elevations today and avoid steep slopes there.

CURRENT CONDITIONS

It was a very mild day in the mountains on Saturday with lots of people out and about. The newest snow would sluff when provoked and there were a few shallow soft slabs scattered about that didn't pose much threat. Most low elevation slopes became damp as well as east through southwest aspects at the higher elevations due to warm temperatures and a little "greenhousing". Currently, temperatures are in the upper teens to mid 20s and winds are from the east in the light to moderate speed range. No new snow was recorded overnight.

RECENT ACTIVITY

The Ben Lomond area continues to be active with avalanches breaking into buried surface hoar in the 12 to 20 inch deep range. At least one new slide was reported on Saturday that was 300 feet wide and ran about 300 feet. It was northeast facing at around 6500 feet in elevation. We've received numerous other reports of slides from that area as well.

There was also a little natural avalanche activity due to warm temperatures in the lower elevations.

THREAT #1
WHERE PROBABILITY SIZE TREND
      Over the next 24 hours.

There is still a poor overall snowpack structure but it appears the current slab is relaxing for the time being. Many steep lines were tickled on Saturday without incident. However, there are still lots of observations that include very weak underlying snow with poor shear test results and some collapsing reported as well. It seems that areas with a thinner overall snow depth that have not avalanched are the most suspect. Also, the current buried surface hoar should not be discounted and is cause for serious evaluation to make sure it's not present. This layer can easily cause avalanching again today especially around the Ben Lomond area.

THREAT #2
WHERE PROBABILITY SIZE TREND
      Over the next 8 hours.

There may be enough warmth again today to produce some heat related activity. This is most likely on the very steep lower elevation terrain on all aspects. Watch for areas of wet, saturated snow and rollerballs indicating you are in that zone. If you are considering hiking up a steep chute today such as the Y coulior, keep in mind you will most likely be underneath numerous terrain features that could release naturally and funnel down into the chute you're in.

MOUNTAIN WEATHER

It looks like another day of mild temperatures in the mountains with cloud cover and possibly a few snow flurries without much accumulation expected. Winds will continue to be light to moderate from an easterly direction. Temperatures will get into the mid 30s at 8000 feet and mid to upper 20s along the ridges. High pressure builds in for the next couple of days then another splitting storm passing to our south mid week followed by a small storm that may effect our area late in the week. In other words, get it while the gettin's good because the current outlook isn't all that great.

GENERAL ANNOUNCEMENTS

Discount Lift tickets: Ski Utah, Backcountry.com, Alta, Deer Valley, Park City, The Canyons, Wolf Mountain, Snowbasin, Beaver Mountain, Brighton, Sundance, and Solitude have donated a limited number of tickets for sale at discounted prices.

Wasatch Powderbird Guides flight plan.

Dawn Patrol Forecast Hotline, updated by 05:30:888-999-4019 option 8.

Daily observations are frequently posted by 10 pm each evening.

Free UAC iPhone app from Canyon Sports.

Subscribe to the daily avalanche advisory e-mail click HERE.

UDOT canyon closures UDOT at (801) 975-4838

We appreciate all your avalanche and snow observations. You can also call us at 801-524-5304 or 800-662-4140, or email to uac@utahavalanchecenter.org

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The information in this advisory is from the U.S. Forest Service, which is solely responsible for its content. This advisory describes general avalanche conditions and local variations always occur.

Drew will update this forecast tomorrow morning. Thanks for calling.

This information does not apply to developed ski areas or highways where avalanche control is normally done.  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 occur.

This advisory provided by the USDA Forest Service, in partnership with:

The Friends of the Utah Avalanche Center, Utah Division of State Parks and Recreation, Utah Division of Emergency Management, Salt Lake County, Salt Lake Unified Fire Authority and the friends of the La Sal Avalanche Center. See our Sponsors Page for a complete list.