Avalanche Advisory
Advisory: Ogden Area Mountains Issued by Evelyn Lees for Tuesday - December 20, 2016 - 7:15am
bottom line

The avalanche danger Is CONSIDERABLE today for triggering a hard wind slab on an upper elevation slopes facing northwest through southeast. These hard wind slabs can be triggered along the ridgelines or in open bowls, and the danger is MODERATE at the mid elevations where the wind has also drifted the snow. There is also a CONSIDERABLE danger of triggering a deep slide of all the storm snow on an upper elevation slope.
special announcement

Once again this winter, our partners at the Wasatch Mountain Club are matching WMC member donations to the Utah Avalanche Center. If you are a WMC member and value avalanche forecasting and education, please send a check made out to the Utah Avalanche Center to the WMC at 1390 South 1100 East #103, Salt Lake City, UT 84105
current conditions

Skies are overcast in the Ogden area mountains this morning and temperatures mild – in the mid 20s to low 30s. The southwesterly winds have been strongest in the Ogden area mountains over the past 24 hours. Yesterday, they averaged 30 to 50 mph along the high ridge lines, with gusts into the 60s. This morning they have decreased a bit - most stations are averaging 10 to 15 mph, with the highest peaks 20 to 30 mph. Between the wind hammered ridgelines and open bowls to the sun crusted southerly facing slopes, there is still a bit of powder left on shady wind sheltered slopes, mostly at the mid elevations.

Wind affected snow. Kory Davis photo
recent activity

Yesterday, people avoided the new hard wind slabs on steep slopes. Explosive work in the Cottonwoods and Ogden area mountains triggered wind slabs and several larger slab avalanches taking out the storm snow, failing on a shallow layer of facets.

Yesterday's observations from the Ogden area mountains:

Region Occurence Date Type/Location Name
Ogden 12/19/2016 Observation: Cutler Ridge Megan Brandt, Bill Brandt, Lee Fortin Details
Ogden 12/19/2016 Observation: Cutler Ridge kory Details
Avalanche Problem 1
type aspect/elevation characteristics
LIKELIHOOD
LIKELY
UNLIKELY
SIZE
LARGE
SMALL
TREND
INCREASING DANGER
SAME
DECREASING DANGER
over the next 24 hours
description

Yesterday’s wind slabs are still sensitive to the weight of a person. Scattered along ridgelines and in open bowls, most of these are hard slabs – a slab avalanche that will break above you, not at your feet. Slope cuts are NOT effective on these. If winds increase again this afternoon where you are, expect additional drifting of the snow and a new sensitive wind slabs.

Cracking of a wind slab
Avalanche Problem 2
type aspect/elevation characteristics
LIKELIHOOD
LIKELY
UNLIKELY
SIZE
LARGE
SMALL
TREND
INCREASING DANGER
SAME
DECREASING DANGER
over the next 24 hours
description

Deeper slides were triggered in the Ogden area mountains with explosives yesterday. These indicate there are still a few places where a larger slide could be triggered, taking out all the snow from last weekend’s storm. This would be most likely on an upper elevation, northwest through easterly facing slope that has also been wind loaded.
weather

Both the wind and clouds will increase this afternoon ahead of a very weak cold front slated to cross northern Utah late tonight. The southwesterly winds will increase this afternoon to 30 mph averages, with 40 - 50 mph averages along the higher ridge lines and gusts in the 50s to 60s.

Temperatures will warm into the mid 30s at 8,000’ and to near freezing along the high ridge lines’. A trace to a few inches of snow is possible tonight, mostly north of I-80. The next chance for snow looks to be around Christmas Day
general announcements

Remember your information can save lives. If you see anything we should know about, please help us out 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 request 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.

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/

Ski Utah mobile snow updates

To those skinning uphill at resorts: it is critical to know the resort policy on uphill travel. You can see the uphill travel policy for each resort 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 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.