Provo 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. Pockets of a CONSIDERABLE danger still exist. The most dangerous areas are the very steep northerly facing slopes to include northwest and northeast 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. People committed to being in the backcountry for the long haul continue to not toy with it.


CURRENT CONDITIONS

We have some light snow this morning in the central Wasatch adding a trace to 2 inches of accumulation. Temperatures are in the mid teens to low 20s and winds are from the west or northwest with light to moderate speeds.


RECENT ACTIVITY

No new avalanche activity was reported from Wednesday. The snow surface has been becoming weak over the last few days with near surface faceting and surface hoar formation.


THREAT #1

WHERE PROBABILITY SIZE TREND
      Over the next 24 hours.

Deep slabs remain the primary concern for today. Take a look at the number of close calls we've had this year (Avalanche List). The number of people involved that have a good amount of stability assessment skill is what I find alarming. What's it worth to get onto steeper slopes? Children: are your parents making wise choices in the backcountry?


THREAT #2

WHERE PROBABILITY SIZE TREND
      Over the next 24 hours.

With the little new snow and the loose snow already on the surface, loose snow sluffs will probably be a bit bigger today. This pales in comparison to the severity of the deep slab concern but we might as well be aware that sluffing is something to keep in mind today.


MOUNTAIN WEATHER

The disturbance currently producing snow in the mountains this morning should be short lived and won't add up more then a few inches of snow. Ridgetop temperatures should be in the mid 20s and ridgetop winds will be from the northwest with light to moderate speeds. Another shot of snow is possible tonight with winds picking up a bit more. No major storms are lined up as of now but there will be small disturbances over the next couple of days.


GENERAL ANNOUNCEMENTS

Please contact Alta Central (801-742-2033) if you trigger a large avalanche in the backcountry, especially if you are adjacent to a ski area, to alert them to the slide and whether anyone is missing or not. Rescue teams can be exposed to significant hazard when responding to avalanches, and do not want to do so when unneeded. Thanks.

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

Donate to your favorite non-profit – The Friends of the Utah Avalanche Center. The UAC depends on contributions from users like you to support our work.

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.

We 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.