| Please join us at the 23rd annual Black Diamond Fall Fundraiser Party Thursday Sept 15. Tickets are on sale now here, at the Black Diamond store & at REI. Special bonus raffle for online ticket purchasers! |  |
| Advisory: Ogden Area Mountains | Issued by Mark Staples for Thursday - January 28, 2016 - 5:55am |
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bottom line Today the avalanche danger remains CONSIDERABLE at the upper elevations on NW through N through E facing slopes where dangerous avalanche conditions exist. There are buried persistent weak layers of faceted snow which are tricky to assess but have been producing avalanches through much of January. Avalanches are the clearest sign of unstable conditions. Also watch for wet loose avalanches on more southerly facing slopes where the snow surface will become wet. Safe terrain is any slope less than 30 degrees in steepness. Many of these low angle slopes have great coverage and great snow on sun and wind sheltered terrain.
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special announcement Friday 5:30pm- Spots are still available for this Friday's Companion Rescue course. Come learn from the pros how to quickly save your buried partners life. The course is designed for every backcountry user. Whether you're a novice or seasoned veteran, this is a great way to refine your rescue skills, learn more about your avalanche equipment and become more confident in your rescue abilities. For all details or to register click here: https://goo.gl/LJKGSQ Saturday 4:30pm - Brighton Resort hosts UAC Forecaster Craig Gordon for a special Know Before You Go awareness talk focused on the current backcountry conditions. Presentation will be held on 3rd floor of Alpine Rose Lodge and as always is free to attend. |
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current conditions Yesterday felt hot with strong sunshine, calm winds, and clear skies. High temperatures yesterday reached 40 degrees F. Snow on south aspects got wet on the surface. Slopes shaded from the sun remained cool and had great riding conditions with soft, settled powder. This morning temperatures are near 30 degrees F with some valley temperatures in the teens F. Light winds are blowing 5 mph. |
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recent activity In the last three weeks, there have only been four days without avalanche activity involving faceted layers of snow. The most recent spike in these persistent slab avalanches occurred on January 20th and 21st including a fatal one on Gobblers Knob. This avalanche activity occurred on almost all aspects in elevations above 8000 feet. View a list of all the avalanche activity here where you can sort by region and date. Yesterday there were many wet loose avalanches on southerly aspects. Many of these started in rocky areas as the snow surface became wet.
The most notable persistent slab avalanche was triggered someone heli-skiing in Cardiff Fork on a northwest facing run at 10,200 feet called Holy Toledo. The skier was the 15th person to ski the slope when it avalanched. He was carried 350 vertical feet and sustained significant injuries when the avalanche slammed him into a tree. The avalanche broke on facets on or near the ground 1 to 4.5 feet deep. Photo - M. White
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| type | aspect/elevation | characteristics |
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LIKELIHOOD
 LIKELY
UNLIKELY
SIZE
 LARGE
SMALL
TREND
 INCREASING DANGER
SAME
DECREASING DANGER
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description
Faceted layers of snow that can produce a persistent slab avalanche exist mostly on NW through N through E facing slopes at upper elevations.The good news is that there has been minimal avalanche activity in the Ogden are mountains. The most likely place to trigger an avalanche is on slopes that previously avalanched near the ground. We call these slopes "repeaters" because they either have or will produce more avalanches this season. Mid elevation slopes in the Ogden area mountains and slopes at other elevations that haven't avalanched are developing a deep, stronger snowpack. |
| type | aspect/elevation | characteristics |
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LIKELIHOOD
LIKELY
UNLIKELY
SIZE
 LARGE
SMALL
TREND
 INCREASING DANGER
SAME
DECREASING DANGER
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description
A few wind slabs remain that can be triggered. The reason is that some may be resting on facets which keep them unstable. Guides ski cut a small wind slab yesterday in the upper part of Mineral Fork. |
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weather Today will be mostly sunny with more calm winds and strong sunshine until clouds enter the area late today. Temperatures should climb into the upper 30s and low 40s F. A major storm is approaching with snowfall starting late Friday. |
| general announcements Remember your information can save lives. If you see anything we should know about, please participate in the creation of our own community avalanche advisory by submitting snow and avalanche conditions. You can also call us at 801-524-5304, email by clicking HERE, or include #utavy in your tweet or Instagram. To get help in an emergency (to launch a rescue) in the Wasatch, call 911. Be prepared to give your GPS coordinates or the run name. Dispatchers have a copy of the Wasatch Backcountry Ski map. Backcountry Emergencies. It outlines your step-by-step method in the event of a winter backcountry incident. If you trigger an avalanche in the backcountry, but no one is hurt and you do not need assistance, please notify the nearest ski area dispatch to avoid a needless response by rescue teams. Thanks. Salt Lake and Park City – Alta Central (801-742-2033), Canyons Resort/PCMR Dispatch (435)615-1911 Snowbasin Resort Dispatch (801-620-1017), Powder Mountain Dispatch (801-745-3772 x 123). Sundance Dispatch (801-223-4150) EMAIL ADVISORY If you would like to get the daily advisory by email you will need to subscribe here. DAWN PATROL Hotline updated daily by 5-530am - 888-999-4019 option 8. Twitter Updates for your mobile phone - DETAILS UDOT canyon closures: LINK TO UDOT, or on Twitter, follow @UDOTavy, @CanyonAlerts or @AltaCentral Utah Avalanche Center mobile app - Get your advisory on your iPhone along with great navigation and rescue tools. Powderbird Helicopter Skiing - Blog/itinerary for the day Lost or Found something in the backcountry? - http://nolofo.com/ To those skinning uphill at resorts: it is your responsibility to know the resort policy on uphill travel. You can see the uphill travel policy for each resort here. IMPORTANT: Before skinning or hiking at a resort under new snow conditions, check in with Ski Patrol. Resorts can restrict or cut off access if incompatible with control and grooming operations. 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 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 exist. |
