Avalanche Advisory
Advisory: Uintas Area Mountains Issued by Craig Gordon for Thursday - February 6, 2014 - 5:45am
bottom line

The avalanche danger will be rising the next couple of days.

Above treeline in the wind zone, you'll find a CONSIDERABLE danger today and human triggered avalanches are likely on steep, wind drifted slopes. The danger is most pronounced on slopes with an easterly component to their aspect.

A scary MODERATE avalanche danger is found on steep, rocky, upper elevation slopes, particularly those facing the north half of the compass. Once triggered, avalanches have the possibility to break deep and wide, creating a dangerous avalanche.

Wind sheltered mid and low elevation terrain offers a LOW avalanche danger.
avalanche watch

THIS AVALANCHE WATCH IS FOR ALL THE MOUNTAINS OF NORTHERN UTAH, WESTERN UINTAS AND THE WASATCH PLATEAU. A WINTER STORM WITH AN EXTENDED PERIOD OF SNOWFALL, INTENSIFYING WEST WIND, AND GRADUALLY WARMING TEMPERATURES WILL OVERLOAD EXISTING WEAK LAYERS OF SNOW. THIS WILL CREATE DANGEROUS AVALANCHE CONDITIONS IN THE BACKCOUNTRY. DRIFTING SNOW WILL CAUSE THE AVALANCHE DANGER TO RISE THROUGHOUT TODAY AND OVERNIGHT. DANGEROUS AVALANCHE CONDITIONS WILL LIKELY DEVELOP BY FRIDAY AND LAST THROUGH THE WEEKEND. THIS WATCH DOES NOT INCLUDE SKI AREAS OR HIGHWAYS WHERE AVALANCHE CONTROL IS NORMALLY DONE.
current conditions

Skies are partly to mostly cloudy and temperatures in the mid teens with single digits along the ridges. Westerly winds ramped up late last night and are currently blowing 30-40 mph along the high peaks. Riding and turning conditions are quite good, especially in wind sheltered terrain.

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

Click here for trip reports and avalanche observations.
recent activity

No news of the weird.

Recent avalanche activity is found here.
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

Winds ramped up overnight and the benign avalanche conditions we've all been enjoying are beginning to change. As a prolonged period of storminess develops, wind drifts will break deeper and wider than you might expect. Raging ridgetop winds will become a major player for the range and there's no shortage of light density snow to blow around. As the snow stacks up and winds continue to blow, look for and avoid any fat, rounded, pillow of snow. Remember- cracking and collapsing of the snowpack are huge signs to unstable snow.

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Avalanche Problem 2
type aspect/elevation characteristics
LIKELIHOOD
LIKELY
UNLIKELY
SIZE
LARGE
SMALL
TREND
INCREASING DANGER
SAME
DECREASING DANGER
over the next 24 hours
description

It's been several weeks since we've seen or heard about any avalanches breaking into deeply buried weak layers near the ground. That's good news and I think we're probably on our way to turning the corner towards a stronger pack where the snow is deep and strong. However, steep, upper elevation, rocky slopes, especially those facing the north half of the compass remain suspect and need to be approached with caution. Gather as much information as possible by tweaking small test slopes with similar characteristics before center-punching big terrain. Above all- think about the consequences of triggering a slide that breaks to the ground.
weather

Looks like there's more confidence for a stormy period coming together. Increasing clouds and wind today with a few inches of snow expected late in the day. West and southwest winds blow in the 30's and 40's along the ridges and temperatures climb into the upper teens. Snowfall rates increase Friday morning and then the main event begins Saturday. Should be a good storm for the range with a couple feet stacking up when it all winds down on Monday.
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 Friday Feb. 7, 2014