In partnership with: Forest Service Utah Avalanche Center, The Friends of the Utah Avalanche Center and Utah State Parks.
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 Sunday, April 10,
2005 and it’s 7:00 a.m.
Next Sunday, April 17th
will be the last of my regularly scheduled advisories.
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:
Skies are partly cloudy and there’s a scattered flurry or two in the air as a cold northerly flow remains over the region. At the upper elevations current temperatures are close to 12 degrees and down at the trailheads it’s in the low to mid 20’s. Winds are out of the north, blowing 10-20 mph along the ridges. A trace of new snow fell overnight bringing storm totals to around 8” in the higher elevation favored areas. Reports from the region indicate good riding and turning conditions and low angle slopes are probably the ticket to avoid feeling the rock hard crusts underneath the new snow.
Avalanche Conditions:
Each weekend it seems there’s fewer and fewer rigs parked at the trailheads and if you ever wanted to be alone in the mountains, now’s your chance. The riding conditions are actually worth the effort and it beats watching reruns of the royal wedding on TV. If you’re getting on the snow today, the avalanche danger is twofold. There could be a shallow wind drift or two on the leeward side of upper elevation ridgelines that may be sensitive to the additional weight of a person. These are fairly manageable in size and can be dealt with by a well-placed slope cut. Secondly, if the sun comes out for any length of time, be on the lookout for wet avalanche activity. During the heat of the day, steep sun exposed slopes should be avoided. While wet avalanches are generally slow moving, they can stack up tremendous amounts of snow, especially in terrain traps such as gullies and steep road cuts.
Bottom Line:
At all elevations the avalanche danger is generally LOW this morning and will rise to MODERATE on sun exposed slopes steeper
than about 35 degrees with day time heating. Human triggered avalanches will be
possible as the day warms up.
Mountain Weather:
A northerly flow
will keep clouds and an occasional snow shower or two over the region through a
good part of the day. Temperatures will be on the cool side with highs at 8,000’
near 30 degrees and at 10,000’ in the low to mid 20’s. Overnight lows will be near
15 degrees. Winds will be out of the north and northwest blowing 10-20 mph with
higher gusts at the most exposed locations. Tonight a ridge of high pressure
begins to move over the region and we should start to dry out. Monday and Tuesday
look to be partly cloudy with rapidly warming temperatures. Highs on Tuesday should
soar into the low 50’s, but will be short-lived as a dry cold front is slated
to arrive on Wednesday, ushering in a cooling trend for the latter part of the
week.
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 Wednesday
Apr.13, 2005.
Thanks for calling!