Avalanche Advisory
Advisory: Uintas Area Mountains Issued by Craig Gordon for Saturday - December 7, 2013 - 6:42am
bottom line

A CONSIDERABLE avalanche danger will be found on steep, wind drifted, mid and upper elevation slopes and human triggered avalanches are likely. Terrain to avoid is steep, rocky, leeward slopes, especially where solid feeling slabs overlay weak sugary snow near the ground. In terrain with these characteristics avalanches have the possibility to break wide and deep, creating an unmanageably large and dangerous slide.

Low elevation terrain, south facing slopes, and slopes that were bare prior to Tuesday's big storm offer a LOW avalanche danger.
special announcement

A strong storm is bearing down on the region and the avalanche danger will be rising throughout the day.
current conditions

South and southeast winds picked up around noon on Friday and have been averaging 25-35 mph along the ridges with a few gusts to 40 mph along the highest peaks. Skies are partly cloudy and temperatures have climbed into the single digits at most locations, though remain near zero along the ridges. The winds are starting to affect the snow surface, but deep, cold snow will still be found on mid and low elevation wind sheltered terrain.

Winds were already starting to change the landscape yesterday afternoon.

Click here for current winds, temperatures, and snowfall throughout the range.

Click here for trip reports and avalanche observations.
recent activity

Two distinctly different avalanche dragons.

Ted found these shallow wind slabs on Double Hill yesterday.

This slide is a result of Tuesday storm. Not a big piece of snow, but a great indicator just how weak our snowpack is, especially in steep rocky terrain.
Avalanche Problem 1
type aspect/elevation characteristics
LIKELIHOOD
LIKELY
UNLIKELY
SIZE
LARGE
SMALL
TREND
INCREASING DANGER
SAME
DECREASING DANGER
over the next 24 hours
description

The avalanche danger will be rising as the day progresses and the storm unfolds. Winds are already a factor as they have plenty of snow to work with, forming fresh drifts that'll be sensitive to the additional weight of a rider. That's a manageable avalanche dragon, because those slides break at or below our skis, board, or sled. But don't get tricked into thinking we're just dealing with manageable avalanches today, because It's what's going on near the ground around the old October snow that's more concerning.

So here's the story- for the first time in a couple of seasons we actually have a bit of structure in our snowpack and it's not just a big pile of sugary snow... that's the good news. The bad news is... there are two distinct weaknesses in the snowpack, but they're strong enough to allow snow to stack up and form a slab. That combination can give us a false sense of snow stability, because the snow with feel solid, luring us deeper into the avalanche dragons den. All we need to do is find a weakness, collapse the slope, and now we're staring down the barrel of a dangerous slide that going to work us as we get dragged through rocks and stumps barely hidden under our relatively shallow snow cover. This setup is most prevalent on mid and upper elevation slopes facing the north half of the compass, especially in terrain that's steep and rocky. The best way to combat this situation is to simply avoid slopes with these characteristics and play on low angle terrain or shred slopes facing the south half of the compass.

Thanks to JG for this great snowpit illustration from Weber Canyon.

Not much has changed with the basic snowpack structure since earlier in the week. Click here for a quick viddy explaining the setup.
weather

A good looking storm is on tap for the region and snow should start falling in earnest by about mid morning with intensities increasing as the day wares on. A foot of new snow is possible by Sunday morning. Until then, southerly winds are gonna be a factor as they blow in the 30's and 40's, before switching to the northwest and backing off into the 20's later this evening. Temperatures rise into the teens and then dip into the single digits overnight. A few snow showers linger over the area Sunday, but in general we should be drying out with warmer temperatures on tap by mid week.
general announcements

Remember your information can save lives. If you see anything we should know about, please participate in the creation of our own community avalanche advisory by submitting snow and avalanche conditions.   You can call me directly at 801-231-2170, email [email protected], or email by clicking HERE

This is a great time of year to schedule a free avalanche awareness presentation for your group or club. You can contact me at 801-231-2170 or email [email protected]

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The information in this advisory is from the US 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 7:00 AM on Sunday Dec. 8, 2013