Avalanche Advisory
Advisory: Provo Area Mountains Issued by Evelyn Lees for Sunday - January 31, 2016 - 7:08am
bottom line

The avalanche danger is CONSIDERABLE on upper elevation slopes, where new snow soft slabs in wind drifted terrain and sluffs can be triggered on slopes approaching 35 degrees and steeper. If the winds increase where you are today, the danger will increase rapidly. There is a CONSIDERABLE danger on steep, upper elevation slopes were deep slides breaking near the ground can be triggered.

CONSIDERABLE means dangerous avalanche conditions - careful snow pack evaluation, cautious route finding and conservative decision-making essential. Human triggered avalanches are likely on steep slopes.

Safer terrain choices with superb snow conditions include lower angle, wind sheltered mid elevation terrain.
current conditions

Under clear to partly cloudy skies, temperatures dropped into the single digits and low teens this morning. Winds are very light, currently averaging less than 5 mph at most stations, from a westerly direction. Storm totals were 12 to 18 inches (1 1/2 to 2" water) in the upper elevations of the Ogden, Park City and Salt Lake mountains, with about 6 to 10 inches (1.4" water) in the Provo area mountains.

The right side up storm is providing excellent turning and riding conditions at mid and upper elevations, and is supportable for snowshoeing.
recent activity

The few backcountry observations from yesterday were of sluffs and shallow soft slabs. The resorts got widespread sluffs and soft slabs with avalanche reduction work, sorm breaking low on the slope in pooled gruapel, others long running on south and southeast facing slopes on crusts. The largest slides were in the Ogden area mountains, in wind drifted terrain, again far running.

Overnight rain in the Provo area mountains triggered a wet sluff on an east-southest facing slope at 8,500' that entrained snow as it ran down, and buried the closed American Fork road 6 feet deep.
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

These sleepers are out there - on localized slopes slides could still break out on the weak facets near the ground. Large and probably unsurvivable, they are most likely to be triggered on an upper elevation northwest through easterly facing slope. Top suspects are slopes with a shallow snow pack, especially slopes that have previously slid one or more times this year. Travel advice - don't roll the dice - just avoid the steep terrain.
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

We have the usual smorgasbord of new snow instability to identify and avoid.

  • Sluffs will be easy to trigger on steep slopes, long running on slopes with the slick crusts beneath, including slopes facing south and east.
  • Any wind drifted snow along the ridge lines will be especially sensitive, where soft slabs can be triggered.
  • Gruapel pooled below cliffs and steep slopes, and a few slides could break out more deeply in these places.
  • Avoid getting close to the sensitive cornices, which may break back further than expected.

I expect the new snow to stay most sensitive in the Ogden area mountains, where near surface facets and surface hoar were preserved. Collapsing, failure on small test slopes or the remote of small slides are clues to this more dangerous layering, which will be more isolated in the Provo and Salt Lake area mountains.
weather

Clouds will increase today, and there's a chance for light snow flurries this afternoon. Winds will increase slightly, especially along the highest ridge lines, where they could average 10 to 20 mph, gusts to 25 from a northwesterly direction. Temperatures will warm to near 20 at 8,000' and 10 at 10,000'.
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/

Ski Utah mobile snow updates

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 ex