Avalanche Advisory
Advisory: Ogden Area Mountains Issued by Trent Meisenheimer for Sunday - March 12, 2017 - 6:26am
bottom line

The avalanche danger is LOW this morning on all aspects and elevations. However, as the sun comes out in the afternoon and the wind speeds decrease, the avalanche danger will quickly rise to MODERATE on mid to low elevation south and northerly aspects for wet loose avalanches.

  • Slide for life conditions are a serious threat and only experienced backcountry travelers should be crawling on ridges and peaks today. Bring your mountaineering tools and crampons if you're heading for any mountain summit.
  • Cornices are large and may break at any time. Give these giant whales a wide berth.
special announcement

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current conditions

This morning under partly cloudy skies, temperatures are still on the warm side. Most upper elevation stations are hovering just above freezing - 32 degrees.. Mid canyon temperatures are in the mid to upper thirties. With clear skies overnight many stations dipped just under 32 degrees, and the snow surface will be crusted this morning. Westerly winds picked up around 8:00 pm last night and on Ogden peak they are currently blowing 25 mph with gusts into the 40's. Lower elevation stations are reporting speeds of 15-20 mph with gusts into the upper 20's.

I don't think the south facing slopes will soften enough today for good corn conditions due to the clouds, wind and cooling temperatures. There are scraps of soft settled powder on the highest due north facing slopes.
recent activity

Wet loose avalanches occurred predictably yesterday as warm temperatures and sunshine heated the snow surface.

Video of a wet avalanche that happened yesterday during the heat of the day.

Avalanche Problem 1
type aspect/elevation characteristics
LIKELIHOOD
LIKELY
UNLIKELY
SIZE
LARGE
SMALL
TREND
INCREASING DANGER
SAME
DECREASING DANGER
over the next 12 hours
description

Overnight temperatures didn't get quite as cold as I would of liked. Many mid to lower elevations did not get a solid re-freeze and that's why there is a MODERATE avalanche danger for wet loose avalanches at the lower elevations.

At the upper elevations the wind, clouds and cooler temperatures should keep the snow surfaces crusted over - keeping our wet loose avalanche problem at bay. However, if the forecast is wrong and the March sun intensifies expect rapidly changing avalanche conditions on the sunny aspects. This time of year a south facing slope can be perfectly safe and in a matter of an hour it can become unstable.

The key to avoiding these types of avalanches is timing. Most days the cycle for wet snow goes like this:

  1. The day starts with hard, refrozen snow and poor riding conditions
  2. Depending on aspect, the snow surface warms and riding conditions improve.
  3. As the snow surface gets wetter and the day heats up, riding conditions deteriorate and the threat of wet avalanches rises.

The timing of this cycle varies by slope through the day with east aspects experiencing it first and west aspects experiencing it last. Loose wet avalanches can occur on northerly aspects as well at low elevations or near rock bands and cliffs.
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

Enormous cornices along the ridge lines are more likely to release with warm temperatures at any time of day or night. Stay way back from the edges of the cornices and minimize any time spent beneath these monsters.
weather

Yesterday's bump in wind speeds ushered in a very weak cold front this morning. By the time many of you will read this the bulk of the storm will have already passed. High clouds will continue to stream overhead as the northwest winds continue to blow for much of the day. Temperatures will cool slightly today and this evening leading to a solid refreeze of the snow pack. High pressure quickly builds back in on Monday and the blue bird will sing again.
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.

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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.