Wasatch Cache National Forest
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 Salt Lake County.

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AVALANCHE ADVISORY

Saturday, March 08, 2008  7:30 am
Good morning, this is Evelyn Lees with the Forest Service Utah Avalanche Center with your backcountry avalanche and mountain weather advisory.  Today is Saturday, March 08, 2008 and it’s about 7:30 am. 

 

Current Conditions:

Under cloudy skies, light snow has just started to fall in the mountains.  Overnight, the westerly winds averaged 25 to 35 mph across the highest peaks, with gusts to 50.  This morning, the winds are in the process of shifting to the northwest and have decreased into the 10 to 20 mph range at most locations.  Temperatures are in the 20’s at mid elevations, and the teens along the ridgelines.  Most old snow surfaces are rough supportable wind or sun crusts, though several inches of soft recrystalized powder on northwest through northeasterly facing slopes provides good riding conditions on untracked slopes.

 

Snow and Avalanche Discussion:

The only activity reported Friday was a very few damp sluffs on steep, sunny slopes and one tired old wind slab that cracked, but didn’t move. 

 

Today, with the addition of a small shot of new snow, sluffs on steep northwest through northeasterly facing slopes could become large enough to be a concern to skiers, boarders and snowshoers.  On many of these shady slopes, the new snow will be landing on sugary, near surface facets sitting on a hard bed surface.  Once a sluff gets moving, it could entrain more snow, and run further and faster than expected on long, continuously steep slopes or in gullies.  A few perched wind slabs or cornices could also crack out beneath the weight of a person, and in the wrong terrain, send them off a cliff or tumbling down a long steep slope.

 

Bottom Line for the Salt Lake, Park City, Ogden, and Provo mountains:

The avalanche danger is generally LOW today, with a MODERATE danger on steep, upper elevation northwesterly through northeasterly facing slopes, where long running sluffs large enough to knock a person off their feet could be triggered.  It may also be possible to trigger a few old wind slabs or cornices, which could send you for a ride in the wrong terrain. The consequence of triggering one of these small avalanches is much less for those on snowmobiles.

 

Mountain Weather:

A weak cold front will bring light snow to the mountains today, with 3 to 5 inches possible.  Another inch or two may be added tonight as snow showers linger into the evening under a northerly flow.  Temperatures today will be near freezing at 8,000’ and in the upper teens at 10,000’.  The northwesterly winds will continue to decrease, into the 10 to 20 mph range at most stations.  Sunday will be partly cloudy and cool with very light winds.  After a rapid warm up on Monday, a small storm looks to be on tap for Tuesday night into Wednesday, with a stronger storm forecast for around next weekend.

 

Announcements
The
Wasatch Powderbird Guides flew in Mineral, Cardiff, White Pine, Lambs and the Sessions yesterday.  Today, if they can fly, they may use two ships in the tri-Canyon area, in Mineral, Cardiff, Days, Silver, White Pine, Grizzly and Mill Creek.  For more detailed information please call (801) 742-2800 or go to their daily blog.

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).

Watch video tututorials and fieldwork from UAC staff at our YouTube channel.

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.

Drew Hardesty will update this advisory by 7:30 on Sunday morning.