Salt Lake Avalanche Advisory

Forecaster: Bruce Tremper

SPECIAL ANNOUNCEMENT

UDOT in Big Cottonwood Canyon will have intermittent closures of the canyon tomorrow (TUESDAY) as they sight in their artillery. Avoid touring in Stairs' Gulch and the Kessler Peak area. You can always go to the web at www.udot.utah.gov/avalanche or call 801.975.4838 to get more information now and throughout the season.


BOTTOM LINE

Danger by aspect and elevation on slopes approaching 35° or steeper.
(click HERE for tomorrow's danger rating)


Danger Rose Tutorial

What little snow exists in the Wasatch mountains is generally stable and the danger is Low.

UDOT in Big Cottonwood Canyon will have intermittent closures of the canyon tomorrow (TUESDAY) as they sight in their artillery. Avoid touring in Stairs' Gulch and the Kessler Peak area. You can always go to the web at www.udot.utah.gov/avalanche or call 801.975.4838 to get more information now and throughout the season.


CURRENT CONDITIONS

What do do this weekend? A bike ride sound good, hiking, walking the dog, rake leaves, shop, ride the groomers at the resorts, most anything. Backcountry snow sports? Not so much. The snow surface on lower elevation, shady slopes is mostly breakable, sun and rain-crusted snow. On northerly facing slopes above about 9,500', you'll find dry, old snow with short, discontinuous, sections that you might mistake for powder, but then you keep hitting wind and sun crusted snow that trip you up. I was proud of myself today to avoid falling on my face or other body parts. (Of course, I never have fallen, but I did drag my hand once back in '72—it's an old joke—you're supposed to laugh.) In addition, there's not much snow and getting less and less of it every day. There's just rocks with a thin layer of white on the south facing slopes, even at the highest elevations. On the shady, upper elevation, north facing slopes in Little Cottonwood Canyon, there is only about a foot and a half of snow. In Big Cottonwood Canyon, maybe a foot of settled snow depth and perhaps six inches outside of the Salt Lake area mountains. Your mileage may vary.


RECENT ACTIVITY

No avalanche activity has been reported from the backcountry or the resorts for the past several days.


THREAT #1

No problem identified.
WHERE PROBABILITY SIZE TREND
No probability identified.
No size identified.
No trend identified.

The snow is old and worn out and is as relaxed as a sleeping cat. There may be a place where you might be able to find a shallow wind slab along the highest ridges, but you would probably have to look hard for it.


MOUNTAIN WEATHER

Generally, a warm, nice weekend but there is a chance of some light snow showers on Saturday night, but it will not amount to any significant accumulation. The daytime high should be near 40 with overnight lows in the lower 20's. Ridge top winds should remain light and southerly. Skies should be partly cloudy. The extended forecast is starting to be more interesting, which isn't saying much. On Wednesday, a closed low should pass to the south of us giving us mostly clouds and southerly winds, but there is a chance for some snow. Then, the longer range models hint at a stronger storm for about a week from today. Let's keep our fingers crossed.


GENERAL ANNOUNCEMENTS

We are only doing afternoon and/or intermittent avalanche advisories until winter returns or the avalanche conditions change. This advisory will carry through the weekend.

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 toll free 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 visitour Friends page.

If you’re getting out and see anything we should know about please let us know. You can leave a message at (801) 524-5304 or 1-800-662-4140, or email us at uac@utahavalanchecenter.org. (Fax 801-524-6301).

This advisory will be updated every few days or as conditions change.


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.