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

saturday february 26, 2005

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 Saturday, February 26, 2005 and it’s 7:00 a.m.

Announcements:

A beacon-training center has been installed at the Nobletts trailhead and “Beacon Basin” up and running!
Many thanks go out to Backcountry Access for supplying all the equipment, Doug Page and all the 
volunteers who provided manpower, Jim Conway who was the brains behind the operation, and the
Kamas and Heber Ranger Districts, along with State Parks and The Utah Snowmobile Association
for their in-kind support. Swing by and check it out before going on the snow. It’s free and within walking 
distance from the parking lot.
 
The Moffit Peak weather station is back in operation. This site was made possible through generous donations
from BRORA, The Utah Snowmobile Association, and the National Weather Service. You can view data by clicking here.

For recent avalanche photos click here.

Current Conditions:

A few high clouds have drifted into the area overnight, but any snow shower activity should remain to the south of the region. Winds are out of the north blowing 10-20 mph along the ridges. Temperatures at the upper elevations are in the mid teens and down around the trailheads it’s in the low 20’s. The cold clear nights are preserving the powder and very good riding and turning conditions will be found on sheltered, shady slopes. On the other side of the compass, the sunny slopes are a mix bag with breakable crusts being the flavor of the day.

Avalanche Conditions:

It’s been an active avalanche week throughout northern Utah and I heard of three human triggered avalanches in the Uintas alone. The most activity was reported on Thursday and slides were averaging 2’-3’ deep. The most dangerous avalanche was about 100’ wide and took a very experienced backcountry person for a nasty ride. Fortunately, they came out on top. All of these avalanches were occurring on northeast facing slopes, between 9,700’ and 10,000’ in elevation, and were running on the weak snow developed during the January dry spell. A rapid rise in temperatures on Thursday morning probably caused the snowpack to become more sensitive to the weight of a person. In theory, after a few days of warming the weak layers should start to adjust and calm down over time. However, weak facets buried in the snowpack tend to be pretty tricky animals and are notoriously persistent. While there are miles and miles of terrain you could ride in today and not trigger a slide, there are still some isolated pockets of unstable snow that could catch you off guard and take you for an unexpected ride. If you’re getting into steep terrain today, try to get as much information about the snowpack as you can, by tweaking small, steep test slopes, with little or no consequence, before diving into your favorite bowl or chute.

Finally, the sun is getting high in the sky and it’s penetrating into north facing slopes at mid and lower elevations and the danger of wet avalanches will increase on steep slopes with daytime heating.

Bottom Line:

The avalanche danger is MODERATE today on slopes steeper than about 35 degrees, especially those with both recent and old deposits of wind drifted snow. Human triggered avalanches are possible.

The danger of wet avalanches will increase to MODERATE on slopes steeper than about 35 degrees, as the day heats up.

On slopes less steep than about 35 degrees the avalanche danger is generally LOW.

Mountain Weather:

Today we should see occasional high clouds drift by the region as a weak storm lingers over the southern half of the state. Temperatures should remain mild for the next few days with highs at 10,000’ in the upper 20’s and at 8,000’ near 35 degrees. Overnight lows will be in the upper teens. Winds will be out of the northwest blowing 10-15 mph along the ridges. High pressure rebuilds tonight, providing clear skies and continued warm temperatures through about late Monday, and then a weak storm is expected to move into the area. There’s probably not a whole lot of moisture associated with this storm and it looks like we go high and dry after this system moves out. Dry conditions are expected through next weekend.

General Information:

We’re interested in what you’re seeing especially if you see or trigger an avalanche. Call 1-800-662-4140, or 801-231-2170, or email to [email protected] or fax to 801-524-6301 and fill us in with all the details.

If you’d like to schedule a free snowmobile specific avalanche talk and or a field day, please call 801-231-2170.

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 advisory by 7:30 a.m. on Sunday Feb. 27, 2005.

Thanks for calling!