Salt Lake Avalanche Advisory

Forecaster: Drew Hardesty

SPECIAL ANNOUNCEMENT

These are dangerous times, friends. Please consider that this is when most of our accidents and fatalities occur. The skiing and riding conditions are excellent at our world class resorts.


BOTTOM LINE

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


Danger Rose Tutorial

THE DANGER IS CONSIDERABLE. THESE ARE VERY UNUSUAL AND DANGEROUS CONDITIONS. LARGE, UNSURVIVABLE MONSTER SLIDES MAY STILL BE TRIGGERED IN STEEP WESTERLY THROUGH NORTH THROUGH EASTERLY TERRAIN.


CURRENT CONDITIONS

A weak ripple of a storm is moving through this morning, adding another inch to the hills and valleys. The winds shifted to the southwest overnight and are blowing 15-20mph; the higher, more exposed anemometers are reading 25-30mph with gusts to 45. Temps are rising into the low 20’s. More sun crusted a greater swath of the south and westerly aspects yesterday, resulting in some natural pinwheeling on the steeper aspects.


RECENT ACTIVITY

Plenty still going on.

· Helicopter assisted explosive work for BCC UDOT released some very large avalanches in Argenta and God’s Lawnmower on Kessler Peak. The Lawnmower sympathec’d out the steep Kessler slabs and continued wrapping east into East Kessler and the Catcher’s Mitt. I’d imagine they were 3-5’ deep or more, connecting nearly 3000’ of starting zones. Debris reportedly washed over Donut Falls, a popular snowshoe hike above the Cardiff/Reynolds Flat parking area.

· A skier in Neff’s Canyon released a deep slab avalanche with a ski cut on a 36 degree northwest facing slope at 9000’. The initial new snow release soon stepped down to up to 4’ deep, propagating 300’ wide.

· Above Silver Lake in Big Cottonwood Canyon, a skier had a 2-4’ deep hard slab break above him, washing him into the aspens below. He was only partially buried with no reports of injuries or lost gear.

· An experienced backcountry skier on the uptrack remotely triggered the Wilson Glade 2.5’ deep and 350’ wide, taking out old tracks. It’s a steep northerly slope at 9800’ in alpine terrain above Mill Creek.

· A snowboarder unintentionally triggered a 2-4’ pocket in Dutch Draw (Canyons backcountry), a steep east-northeast facing slope at 9900’.


THREAT #1

WHERE PROBABILITY SIZE TREND
      Over the next 24 hours.

We’re on the downside of the curve. Good news? Not so fast. These are dangerous times. It’s where you and the snowpack intersect on a line of desire and destiny that produces the accident. This is the time when most of our accidents and fatalities occur. Many, but far from all, slopes slid naturally over the weekend and those that remain are hanging in the balance. Avoidance the steep west through north through east lines is the only ticket for coming home at the end of the day. Remember that the young desert wanderer Everett Ruess too disappeared after writing that, “The beauty was more than I could bear.” Don’t let powder fever lead you down the same path.

Large and dangerous avalanches can still be triggered on, adjacent to, and underneath steep slopes approaching 30 degrees and steeper. They will be most pronounced on west through north through east facing slopes at the mid and upper elevations, but may still be possible at the low elevations and on cut-banks above roads and creekbeds.


THREAT #2

WHERE PROBABILITY SIZE TREND
      Over the next 24 hours.

Shallow wind drifts are likely from the northwest to southwesterly winds. Avoid any new wind pillows along the high, lee terrain.


MOUNTAIN WEATHER

A weak disturbance moving through should drop an inch or two today and another inch or two tonight. Winds will be 15-20mph from the west, dropping to 10-15mph tonight. Temps will be in the low 20s at 10,000’ today. A cutoff Low dives to the south, keeping us in between systems through mid to late week. Chance of storminess late in the weekend.


GENERAL ANNOUNCEMENTS

Be sure to attend the après-ski fundraiser at Snowbird for the Utah Avalanche Center, Saturday, February 6, 4:30-7, Hours d’oeuvres, beer, wine, music and silent auction. Golden Cliff, Cliff Lodge, $50. More information. Purchase tickets HERE.

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.

I will update this forecast on 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.