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.

  

 

 

Avalanche ADVISORY

sunDAY january 28, 2007

The information in this advisory expires 24 hours after the date and time it’s issued, but will be updated on Wednesday January 31, 2007.

 

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, January 28, 2007 and it’s about 7:00 in the morning. Avalanche advisories for the western Uinta’s are available on Wednesday, Saturday, Sunday and all holidays and are brought to you in partnership with Utah State Parks and Recreation.

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 801-231-2170, or email at [email protected] and fill me in with all the details. 

 

Yesterday’s first annual western Uinta fundraising ride was an amazing success with nearly 150 people showing up for the ride alone!

I want to thank the Jim Shea Family Foundation, Rocky Mountain Sledders, the Wasatch Snowmobile Association and the Utah Snowmobile Association for all their tireless work in putting the event together. Thanks again to Team Thunderstruck and the Boondockers crew for helping out and schooling even the most experienced riders. Also, we couldn’t have pulled it off if it weren’t for Chad Booth who did an incredible job as both master of ceremonies and auctioneer. Finally, it wouldn’t have been possible without the support of everyone who attended… you folks are awesome!  

 

Current Conditions:

The ridge of high pressure that’s virtually shut off any significant storm activity remains firmly entrenched over the area, giving us clear skies and cool temperatures this morning. At 10,000’ it’s in the mid teens and right around 10 degrees at the trailheads. Winds are out of the west and light even at the most exposed locations, blowing 10-15 mph. The riding and turning conditions are pretty grim, but the bright beautiful sunshine and fresh mountain air make a peak bagging trip well worth the effort.

 

Avalanche Conditions:

Yesterday’s outing brought us into terrain around Daniel’s Summit where we got to see some of the shallowest and weakest snow anywhere in the range. Nearly everyone I spoke with commented about the lack of snow and how there was no structure or base to the snowpack. Kinda like riding in a sandbox. Brett did a great job summing up the state of the snowpack on yesterday’s advisory and not much has changed in the past 24 hours. At upper elevations there may be an old tired wind slab or two that could grab your attention, but for the most part they’re shallow and very manageable. In the bigger scheme of things, the snowpack continues to grow weaker with time, especially in terrain where the pack is less than about two feet or so. Overshadowing the avalanche danger right now is the possibility of slamming into a buried stump or rock.

 

Bottom Line:

On most slopes throughout the range the avalanche danger is generally LOW today and human triggered avalanches are unlikely.

 

Mountain Weather:

Today should be mostly sunny with some high clouds drifting through the area late in the day. Temperatures will be slightly cooler with highs at 10,000’ in the mid 20’s and at 8,000’ near freezing. Under clearing skies, overnight lows drop into the low teens. Winds should remain well behaved, out of the west and southwest, blowing 10-15 with an occasional gust in the low 20’s. The weather pattern looks depressingly similar throughout the week, though the computer models hint at the possibility of a weak storm system around Wednesday night that may give us a small shot of snow and cooling temperatures.

 

Announcements:

I want to thank the crew at Tri-City Performance in Springville along with Polaris and the Utah Snowmobile Association for partnering with the avalanche center and stepping up to the plate by providing a new sled for this season!  Click here, to see the new ride!

 

We installed Beacon Basin at the Noblett’s Trailhead and it’s good to go. I want to thank Doug, Bill, Jared, Brad and Wally who

unselfishly took time out of their powder day to help out the riding community… you guys rock!

 

Free avalanche awareness classes are available. Give me a call at 801-231-2170 or email [email protected] and get one scheduled before the season gets too crazy!

 
If any terms confuse you, take a look at our new avalanche encyclopedia.

 

For avalanche photos click here.

 

General Information: 

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’ll update this advisory by 7:00 am on Wednesday January 31, 2007.

This advisory is also available by calling 1-800-648-7433 or

1-888-999-4019.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

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