Wasatch
Cache and Uinta National Forests 
In partnership with:
Tri-City
Performance, Polaris, the
Avalanche ADVISORY
saturDAY
february 10, 2007
The information in this advisory expires 24 hours after
the date and time it’s issued, but will be updated on Sunday February 11, 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
This
advisory covers the terrain from Daniels Summit, to
Current Conditions:
Under mostly cloudy skies,
we remain under the influence of a moist southwest flow this morning. A trace
of new snow fell overnight, not making much of a difference to our depth
challenged snowpack which remains at about 65% of normal for the winter. Winds
are light and out of the west, blowing 10-15 mph along the ridges. Currently at
8,000’ temperatures are near 30 degrees and it’s in the mid 20’s at 10,000’.
Avalanche Conditions:
The lack of snow
this season has resulted in a very weak snowpack throughout the range. On most slopes
the pack has turned into an unsupportable, wallowing mess of sugary
facets. The danger with this type of snowpack is it has no structural integrity
and will begin to fail, producing avalanches with just a little bit of
additional new snow or wind load. This is the complete opposite of last year’s
predictably stable snowpack. With additional snow and increased winds on the
way in the next 12-24 hours, I’d expect a rising avalanche danger. If you’re
getting out today and tomorrow you’ll need to get your avalanche radar tuned in
and pay attention to indicators of unstable snow. Remember- cracking within the
snowpack and collapsing or whoomphing noises
are big clues. In addition, as the new snow starts to stack up it may be
possible to remotely
trigger avalanches from a distance and on relatively flat terrain. You’ll
need to be diligent with your route selection and travel techniques and only
put one person on the slope at a time. Finally, think about the consequences of
triggering a slide and avoid terrain
traps such a gullies and steep road cuts.
Bottom Line:
The avalanche danger is MODERATE today on slopes steeper than
about 35 degrees, especially those with both old and recent deposits of wind
drifted snow. A MODERATE
avalanche danger means human triggered avalanches are possible.
With additional snow and wind the avalanche danger
may rise to CONSIDERABLE on all steep slopes by late this afternoon or
early evening. A CONSIDERABLE avalanche
danger means human triggered avalanches are probable.
Mountain Weather:
A
warm front is bringing light snow to the area this morning and it should move
east of the region in the next few hours. Skies will remain mostly cloudy throughout
the day and temperatures will be mild. Highs at 8,000’ are expected to reach
into the mid 30’s and at 10,000’ near freezing. Overnight lows will be around
25 degrees. Southwesterly winds will blow in the 10-20 mph range during the
day, switching to the west this evening and becoming stronger with gusts in the
low 40’s along the high ridges. Snow re-develops tonight through Sunday with
cooling temperatures and storm totals in the 4”-8” range. Clearing on Monday
and another weak system is expected to reach the area midweek.
Announcements:
I’d like to thank Jim Shea, The Canyons and Colleen
Graham from the Friends of the UAC for all their hard work in making last
Friday night’s Know Before You Go fundraiser such a
success!
The 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!
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
This advisory is
also available by calling 1-800-648-7433 or
1-888-999-4019.
.