BOTTOM LINE
Danger by aspect and elevation on slopes approaching 35° or steeper.
(click HERE for tomorrow's danger rating)
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Danger Rose Tutorial
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The avalanche danger remains MODERATE, especially in mid and upper elevation terrain facing the north half of the compass. While human triggered slides which break into weak snow near the ground are getting harder to initiate, they're still possible, particularly on steep rocky slopes with a shallow weak snowpack.
A MODERATE avalanche danger also exists on upper elevation leeward slopes with recent deposits of wind drifted snow.
The avalanche danger is generally LOW on sunny slopes and in low elevation terrain. |
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CURRENT CONDITIONS |
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A few scattered clouds moved into the area overnight, but it looks like we’ve got a clear slot before clouds thicken later this afternoon. South and southwest winds increased early this morning and are blowing 15-25 mph along the ridges. Temperatures remained rather mild overnight and are currently in the mid and upper 20’s. No significant new snow has fallen since the New Years Eve storm and upper elevation snow depths are grim at best with only about 3’ total… that’s ½ our average snowpack for this time of year.
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RECENT ACTIVITY |
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No new avalanche activity to report.
Recent Uinta observations can be found here. |
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THREAT #1 |
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PROBABILITY |
SIZE |
TREND |
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Over the next
24 hours.
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Last night’s winds probably found enough loose snow to blow around and create a fresh wind drift or two on the leeward side of upper elevation ridges, but in general these should be easy to detect and mostly manageable in size. Slope cuts are a great tool to utilize when dealing with this type of avalanche condition, but take care that one doesn’t catch you off guard, knocking you off your skis, board or sled. With increased winds and snow expected over the next few days be aware of changing avalanche conditions. Today's manageable slide could turn into an unmanageable situation by about mid week. |
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THREAT #2 |
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PROBABILITY |
SIZE |
TREND |
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Over the next
24 hours.
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Right now the snowpack is a lot like me at the end of a busy winter season- tired, lifeless and not full of much energy. Much like me though, the snowpack gets energized and comes back to life once a big storm starts to materialize. Well it looks like winter will finally get going in the next couple of days and it won’t take much of a load before our weak, house of cards snowpack reacts and we see avalanches. Let’s face it; our snowpack has some major issues this winter. It’s unusually weak and shallow for this time of year and as you already know- a weak snowpack is a dangerous snowpack.
Until it starts storming again, the elusive avalanche dragon is in hibernation mode and there are only a few isolated places where you could trigger a deep, scary avalanche today. Of course the usual suspects come to mind- steep, rocky, upper elevation terrain with a shallow, weak snowpack. |
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MOUNTAIN WEATHER |
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A moist west and southwest flow sets up over the state this week, bringing a much needed change to our weather pattern. Today we should see increasing clouds and mild temperatures. Highs at 8,000’ will be 40 degrees and at 10,000’ near freezing. Overnight lows hover around 20 degrees. Winds remain generally well behaved today, blowing out of the south, southeast and southwest in the 15-25 mph range with a few gusts in the 40’s along the high ridges.
The first in a series of impulses arrives Monday, but weakens considerably as it dives south and we should only see an inch or two of snow by late afternoon. More moisture streams onshore during the mid week period and we should do fairly well on the predominate southwest flow of these systems. We’ll have a better handle on the evolution of the storms for tomorrow’s update.
Check out this great weather briefing from the National Weather Service.
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GENERAL ANNOUNCEMENTS |
The information in this advisory expires 24 hours after the date and time posted, but will be updated with a special holiday forecast by 7:00 AM Monday January 18th, 2010.
If you’re getting out and about and trigger an avalanche or see anything interesting please drop us an email at craig@utahavalanchecenter.org or call 801-231-2170
Also, now is a great time to schedule one of our free avalanche awareness presentations for your group or club. Email or call us and we’ll get you booked before things get too crazy. |
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This information does not apply to developed ski areas or highways where avalanche control is normally done. This advisory is from the U.S.D.A. Forest Service, which is solely responsible for its content. This advisory describes general avalanche conditions and local variations always occur. |
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This advisory provided by the USDA Forest Service, in partnership with:
The Friends of the Utah Avalanche Center, Utah Division of State Parks and Recreation, Utah Division of Emergency Management, Salt Lake County, Salt Lake Unified Fire Authority and the friends of the La Sal Avalanche Center. See our Sponsors Page for a complete list. |
