Wasatch Cache and Uinta National Forests

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

Tri-City Performance, Polaris, the Utah Snowmobile Association, the National Weather Service, BRORA, and Backcountry Access.

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Avalanche advisory

sundAY march 26, 2006

This advisory expires 24 hours from the date and time posted, but will be updated by 7:30 am wednesday march 29, 2006.

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 March 26, 2006 and it’s 7:00 a.m. Avalanche advisories for the western Uintas are available on Wednesday, Saturday, Sunday and all holidays.

This advisory covers the terrain from Daniels Summit, to Mirror Lake, to the North Slope of the western Uinta Mountains. That’s a lot of turf and I can’t be in all of these places at once. Your snow and avalanche observations are critical to this program and help to save other riders lives by getting accurate information out to the public. I’m interested in what you’re seeing especially if you see or trigger an avalanche. Please call 1-800-662-4140, or 801-231-2170, or email to [email protected] and fill us in with all the details.

Current Conditions:

The hurricane force winds of yesterday switched to the northwest at about 11:00 last night ushering in the cold front and a solid shot of snow for the region. The northern part of the range faired better on this flow with up to 10” of new snow above 9,200’ and 4”-6” down at the trail heads and on the southern half of the range. Winds are still a nuisance, blowing from the north and northwest with hourly averages in the mid teens and gusts in the low 30’s. It’s going to feel like January out there this morning with current temperatures at 8,000’ in the low 20’s and at 11,000’ it’s just about 10 degrees. Couple those temperatures with the strong winds and it feels more like -8 degrees along the upper elevation ridges.

Avalanche Conditions:

What a difference a day makes! Last night’s cold front roared through the area reminding us winter isn’t even close to being over quite yet. Looking at the state of the snowpack- yesterday’s southerly winds were strong enough to knock you off your feet and while there was a limited amount of snow to work with, the winds did find enough snow to transport and form pockety wind drifts on leeward slopes. The big difference today is there’s an abundance of new snow to blow around and slabs will be more widespread and sensitive. The only fly in the ointment is the gusty northwest winds were so strong, wind slabs would have formed in some unusual locations. My suspicion is slabs will be found far down off of ridgelines on the mid portion of the slope and around terrain features such as chutes, gullies and sub-ridges. It’s going to be tricky out there and some terrain will be wind blasted, but just 100 yards away there may be a deep, sensitive slab. To play it safe, look for and steer clear of any fat looking slope that may have the appearance of a small humpback whale.

Since it’s spring… you know the routine. Should the sun come out for any length of time expect the danger of wet avalanches to increase on steep slopes at all elevations and remember to avoid terrain traps such as gullies especially during the heat of the day, where wet heavy, cement-like avalanche debris can pile up deeply.

Bottom Line:

The avalanche danger in upper elevation terrain near and above tree-line is generally MODERATE today on slopes steeper than about 35 degrees, especially those with recent deposits of wind drifted snow. Human triggered avalanches are possible. However, be aware that within this terrain there are pockets of CONSIDERABLE avalanche danger on steep wind loaded slopes and human triggered avalanches are probable.

Should the sun come out in earnest, the danger of wet avalanches will rise to MODERATE at all elevations on steep, sun exposed slopes during the heat of the day.

Mountain Weather:

The back edge of the storm is already over the lake, meaning we should see a few more hours of scattered snow showers before things really taper off. Partly cloudy skies are expected by about mid day. Highs today at 8,000’ should reach into the upper 20’s and at 10,000’ near 20 degrees. Overnight lows will be in the mid teens. North and northwest winds will be strong along the upper elevation ridges, in the 20-35 mph range, and should relax towards the early afternoon. Partly cloudy skies and slightly warmer temperatures are expected on Monday as brief high pressure builds. Another storm slides into the region late Monday through Tuesday with some lingering snow showers into Wednesday.

Announcements:

 
If any terms confuse you, take a look at our new avalanche encyclopedia.
 
“Beacon Basin” is good to go and ready to use at the Noblett’s Trailhead. While you’re waiting for your partners 
to gear up, swing by and test your avalanche beacon skills. It’s free and easily accessible from the parking lot. A big thanks 
goes out to members of the Utah Snowmobile Association for assisting in the installation and to Backcountry Access for 
providing all the gear. 
 
A special thanks to Tri-City Performance, Polaris and The Utah Snowmobile Association for stepping up to the plate 
and partnering to provide a new sled for the Utah Avalanche Center’s western Uinta avalanche forecasting program. 
 
The Moffit Peak weather station is up and running. This site was made possible through generous donations
by BRORA, The Utah Snowmobile Association, and the National Weather Service. You can view data by clicking here.

For avalanche photos click here.

General Information:

If you haven’t taken one of our free snowmobile specific avalanche awareness classes, schedule one now before things get too crazy. Give me a call at 801-231-2170 and I’d be happy to tailor a talk for your group.

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 expires 24 hours from the date and time posted, but will be updated by 7:30 am on Wednesday March 29, 2006.

Thanks for calling!