In partnership with: Utah Division of State
Parks and Recreation, The Friends of the Utah Avalanche Center, Utah Department
of Emergency Services and Homeland Security and
“keeping
you on top”
AVALANCHE ADVISORY
Saturday,
February 09, 2008 7:30 am
Good morning, this is Brett Kobernik with
the
Thanks to everyone who
attended the backcountry awareness dinner at Snowbird last night. The benefit for the
Surprisingly there are
still a few slots left for our 3 day avalanche workshop scheduled for next
weekend. Contact the Black Diamond
retail store to sign up, this is sure to fill soon.
Current Conditions:
Winds continued
overnight along the higher ridges gusting into the 60s and 70s and also gusting
into the 20s along the mid elevation ridges.
Temperatures were in the upper teens at the higher locations and in the
mid 20s in the 7 to 8000 foot level.
Snow and Avalanche Discussion:
No significant
avalanche activity was reported from the backcountry on Friday however there were
crowns and debris visible
from the natural
avalanche event on Thursday. UDOT
avalanche control work did produce a couple of slab avalanches in Big and
Little Cottonwood canyons on Friday (PHOTO1
PHOTO2)
but it sounds like not quite as much activity as expected. There were plenty of reports of upside down
and variable snow from Friday. (Observations) Most people found the wind slabs that formed
over the last few days were stubborn and not reactive. People could get some larger chunks of cornices
to break but they were also stubborn and produced no avalanching upon hitting
the slopes below them. I would note that
we didn’t get any reports from people getting into the really exposed upper
elevation terrain on Friday where things were still getting loaded and probably
a bit more sensitive.
We have two things to
consider today in the backcountry. If
you’re skiing, snowboarding or snowmobiling in the high country you’ll want to
continue to watch for lingering wind slabs that may still release with the
weight of a person. These are scattered around
on numerous aspects and elevations but more dangerous at higher elevations.
The second concern is
warmer temperatures but it looks like they’ll mainly affect lower elevation
terrain today. An abundance of snow
along the foothills and mountain valleys this year demands that we adjust our
behavior a bit. Gully bottoms and steep
embankments should be avoided today especially if the sun pops out. Boy Scout leaders should keep scouts out of
this terrain today. People
in residential areas that have huge amounts of snow need to be careful of
avalanches coming off of their house roofs. Southerly slopes should be monitored at the
higher locations as well today especially during periods of clearing. If you are in higher terrain and exit out
lower elevations don’t forget to watch where you are and avoid terrain traps.
Bottom Line for the
The
avalanche danger is mostly MODERATE this
morning especially in the low and mid elevations. This means human triggered avalanches are
possible. There are a few pockets with a
CONSIDERABLE danger along the more
exposed ridgelines where wind loading continues. Warming temperatures may make the danger rise
to CONSIDERABLE at lower elevations as
the day progresses.
Mountain Weather:
We’ll see the westerly
winds continue this morning before slowing later today. We’ll see partly cloudy skies with a slight
chance of a snow flurry. Temperatures
will reach into the upper 20s at 8000 feet and low 20s at 10,000. Temperatures will reach near 40 at lower
elevations. Warmer temperatures and more
clear skies are in store for Sunday.
Announcements
Yesterday, Wasatch Powderbird Guides did
not fly due to weather and they will be wrestling with the wind this morning. Go
online to check their area of operations for today. For more detailed information please call
(801) 742-2800 or go to their daily
blog.
Backcountry Awareness Week avalanche
safety clinics are being held at Snowbird today and tomorrow. For more
information, call 933-2147 or go to http://www.avalanche.org/~uac/fuac-events.htm.
There are a few spots left in the Friends of the
For folks with an Alta pass,
our partner ACE is offering an avalanche awareness class the evening of Feb 12
and 13, and ½ day the 16th, for $25.
Pre Register at [email protected].
If you want to get this
avalanche advisory e-mailed to you daily click HERE.
UDOT highway avalanche control work info can be
found by calling (801) 975-4838.
Our statewide tollfree line is 1-888-999-4019 (early morning, option 8).
The UAC depends
on contributions from users like you to support our work. To find out
more about how you can support our efforts to continue providing the avalanche
forecasting and education that you expect please visit our Friends page.
If you see any avalanches or interesting snow conditions, please leave us a
message at (801) 524-5304 or 1-800-662-4140, or email us at [email protected].
(Fax 801-524-6301).
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.