Wasatch Cache and Uinta National Forests

In partnership with: Forest Service Utah Avalanche Center, The Friends of the Utah Avalanche Center and Utah State Parks.

Avalanche ADVISORY

Good morning. This is Craig Gordon with the Forest Service Utah Avalanche Center with your avalanche and mountain weather advisory for the western Uinta Mountains. Today is Wednesday, December 24, 2003 and it’s 7:30 a.m.

Current conditions:

Clouds and wind are on the rise this morning as the leading edge of a strong Pacific storm creeps into the region. Current 10,000’ temperatures are in the mid 20’s and winds are generally out of the south at speeds of 10-20 mph with gusts in the low 30’s along the upper elevation ridgelines. The new snow we received from Sunday night’s storm has settled out to about 8” in depth. Southerly aspects are both wind and sun damaged, though on the shady slopes very good powder turning and riding conditions can be found on a mostly supportable base.

Avalanche Conditions:

It looks like Santa is going to grant me my wish for a cold winter storm this Christmas and The National Weather Service is in on the act as well, as they have issued a winter storm watch for the region. With a good shot of snow and wind headed our way in the next couple of days there are several weaknesses in the snowpack that we need to focus on. First off, on north facing slopes the surface snow has become loose and uncohesive in the past few days due to the combination of clear skies and cold temperatures. Next are the weaknesses that have developed both above and below the rain crust that formed on the 13^th. And finally in areas where the snowpack is less than about 21/2’ in depth, the snow near the ground has grown weak as well. This is especially apparent in the upper elevations where the underlying terrain is rocky.

Those are some thoughts for the future; now back to the present. Southerly winds have been blowing for nearly 24 hours now and there is plenty of snow out there available for transport. Newly formed wind drifts will be most prominent on the leeward side of both upper and mid elevation ridgelines today. As the day progresses wind slabs may become deeper and more sensitive to the added weight of a backcountry traveler. If you’re getting into steep upper elevation terrain today be alert to the signs of instability such as cracking and collapsing of the snowpack.

Bottom Line:

At mid and upper elevations, the avalanche danger is MODERATE today on any steep slope with recent deposits of wind-drifted snow. Human triggered avalanches are possible.

At low elevations and in wind-sheltered terrain the avalanche danger is generally LOW. Both human triggered and natural avalanches are unlikely.

Mountain Weather:

A weak weather disturbance will move across the region early today bringing us mostly cloudy skies and light snow showers, though only about an inch or two is expected out of this impulse. High temperatures at 10,000’ will be in the mid to upper 20’s and at 8,000’ in the mid 30’s. Overnight lows will be near 25 degrees. Winds will be out of the southwest at speeds of 15-25 mph with gusts in the 40’s along the high elevation ridgelines. A stronger system should work into the area on Thursday with snow developing after midnight and accumulations look to be in the 4”-8” range. The storm should kick into gear on Thursday with heavy snow a good possibility as this portion of the storm is expected to stall over the region through Friday.

General Information:

We can always use snow and avalanche information and your observations are an important component to this program. So if you see or trigger an avalanche give us a call at 801-231-2170 or 1-800-662-4140.

Also, if you’d like to schedule a free avalanche awareness talk and/or field day give us a call at 801-524-5304.

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.

This advisory will be updated by 7:30 a.m. on Thursday, Dec. 25, 2003.

Thanks for calling.