Avalanche Advisory
Advisory: Uintas Area Mountains Issued by Craig Gordon for Friday - January 10, 2014 - 5:34am
bottom line

Terrain to avoid- steep, upper elevation slopes facing the north half of the compass, where a HIGH avalanche danger exists. Both human triggered and natural avalanches are likely. Once initiated, today's avalanches will break deep and wide, creating a dangerous and possibly unsurvivable slide.

Go to terrain- If you're looking for LOW avalanche danger, head to wind sheltered terrain, especially those facing the south half of the compass where there are no steep slopes above or adjacent to where you're riding.
avalanche warning

An Avalanche Warning is in effect for the western Uinta Mountains. The combination of strong ridgetop winds, coupled with dense heavy snow has created a HIGH avalanche danger. Both human triggered and natural avalanches are likely. Dangerous avalanche conditions exist on steep wind drifted slopes.
current conditions

Yesterday's storm came together nicely for the eastern front, delivering a foot of medium density snow. The big news is the wind...it's been cranking! Westerly winds picked up early Thursday and have been blowing steadily in the 30's and 40's with gusts near 60 mph along the high ridges. Temperatures have risen 10 degrees since midnight and are currently in the mid teens. Low angle, wind sheltered terrain with no steep slopes above or adjacent to where you're riding are the ticket.

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

Click here for trip reports and avalanche observations.
recent activity

Visibility was pretty miserable yesterday and we weren't able to see much of the big terrain surrounding the region. However, there were reports of steep road banks avalanching naturally late in the afternoon.
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

Make no mistake... our snowpack is sketchy and avalanche conditions have changed dramatically overnight. I think most steep slopes are in the balance and just need a trigger like us to come along and knock the legs out from underneath. This is the type of setup where most avalanche accidents happen in the western Uinta's. i know we've all been powder starved this winter, but right now we need to exercise some patience. It doesn't mean you can't ride today. It does mean you've gotta avoid being on or underneath steep slopes facing the north half of the compass. Once triggered, today's avalanches have the potential to break to the ground, creating a deep, dangerous, and unsurvivable slide.
weather

Snow should continue through the day with accumulations in the 2"-4" range. Expect west winds along the ridges in the 30's and 40's with temperatures climbing to near 30 degrees. Overnight low dip into the 20's and skies clear. Warm and windy for Saturday with the next round of snow developing late in the day.
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 Saturday Jan. 11, 2014