Avalanche Advisory
Advisory: Salt Lake Area Mountains Issued by Brett Kobernik for Sunday - April 13, 2014 - 6:58am
bottom line

The avalanche danger is LOW this morning but may reach MODERATE today with the new snow. Watch for any fresh drifts and for point releases if the sun pokes out late today.




special announcement

TODAY IS THE LAST REGULAR DAILY AVALANCHE FORECAST FOR THE 2013-2014 SEASON. We will continue intermittent advisories through April as conditions warrant.

current conditions

Ridgetop temperatures finally dipped below freezing around 2am this morning with the passage of a cold front which produced a couple of inches of high density snow. The winds increased briefly and have slowed again into the light to moderate speed category from the west.

recent activity

It seems no significant avalanches occurred on Saturday but a number were reported that occurred on Thursday and Friday including a large wet slab in Holy Toledo: DETAILS

PHOTO: WasatchTyeDyeTwins

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

Your main concern today will revolve around the small amount of new snow. Two things may add to instability. First, winds may drift the new snow enough to form some small sensitive drifts. Second, if the sun peeks out late today it may be enough to heat the new snow and initiate some wet loose avalanches. This should be a manageable situation for those with good backcountry avalanche skills. Use slope cuts and quick hand pits to determine if the new snow is stable.

weather

Snow showers should redevelop this morning and linger into the afternoon producing a few more inches of snow. Winds will start to shift more northerly and increase into the moderate speed range. High pressure returns for Monday and Tuesday with a quick hitting cold front Wednesday.

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 or 800-662-4140, email by clicking HERE, or include #utavy in your tweet or Instagram.

If you trigger an avalanche in the backcountry - especially if you are adjacent to a ski area – please call the following teams to alert them to the slide and whether anyone is missing or not. Rescue teams can be exposed to significant hazard when responding to avalanches, and do not want to do so when unneeded. Thanks.

Salt Lake and Park City – Alta Central (801-742-2033), Canyons Resort Dispatch (435-615-3322)

Snowbasin Resort Dispatch (801-620-1017), Powder Mountain Dispatch (801-745-3772 x 123).

Sundance Dispatch (801-223-4150)

EMAIL ADVISORY We have switched to a new SLC email advisory system. If you would like to get the daily advisory by email, or if you have been getting the advisory by email since the beginning of the season and wish to continue, 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

Utah Avalanche Center mobile app - Get your advisory on your iPhone along with great navigation and rescue tools.uned.

Wasatch Powderbird Guides Blog/Itinerary for the Day.  

Lost or Found something in the backcountry? - http://nolofo.com/

Ski Utah mobile snow updates

Discount lift tickets are now available at Backcountry.com - Thanks to Ski Utah and the Utah Resorts.  All proceeds go towards paying for Utah Avalanche Center avalanche and mountain weather advisories.

To those skinning uphill at resorts:  it is your responsibility to know the resort policy on uphill travel.  Some allow uphill travel and have guidelines, some don't. Contact the Ski Patrol at each resort for details. IMPORTANT: Before skinning 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 exist.