Avalanche Advisory
Advisory: Uintas Area Mountains Issued by Craig Gordon for Thursday - January 5, 2017 - 3:24am
bottom line

In mid and upper elevation terrain, particularly leeward slopes in the wind zone, at and above treeline, a HIGH avalanche danger exists. Dangerous, human triggered avalanches are VERY LIKELY on steep, wind drifted slopes, especially those facing the north half of the compass, and particularly those with an easterly component to their aspect. Once triggered, today's avalanches have the potential to break deep and wide, creating a dangerous and possibly unsurvivable avalanche.

You'll find a CONSIDERABLE avalanche danger on steep wind drifted slopes at low elevations and human triggered avalanches are LIKELY.

If you're looking for LOW avalanche danger simply stick on gentle terrain, like big, open meadows, with no steep slopes above or adjacent to where you're riding.
avalanche warning

THE FOREST SERVICE UTAH AVALANCHE CENTER IN SALT LAKE CITY HAS CONTINUED A BACKCOUNTRY AVALANCHE WARNING. A VIDDY DESCRIBING THE INCREASING DANGER IS FOUND HERE

* TIMING...IN EFFECT FROM 6 AM MST THIS MORNING TO 6 AM MST FRIDAY

* AFFECTED AREA...FOR THE MOUNTAINS OF NORTHERN UTAH INCLUDING THE WASATCH RANGE...BEAR RIVER RANGE AND THE WESTERN UINTA

MOUNTAINS.

* AVALANCHE DANGER...THE AVALANCHE DANGER FOR THE WARNING AREA IS HIGH.

* REASON/IMPACTS...HEAVY SNOW HAS CREATED WIDESPREAD AREAS OF UNSTABLE SNOW. BOTH HUMAN TRIGGERED AND NATURAL AVALANCHES ARE LIKELY OR OCCURRING. STAY OFF OF AND OUT FROM UNDER SLOPES STEEPER THAN 30 DEGREES.

BACKCOUNTRY TRAVELERS SHOULD CONSULT WWW.UTAHAVALANCHECENTER.ORG OR CALL 1-888-999-4019 FOR MORE DETAILED INFORMATION.

THIS WARNING DOES NOT APPLY TO SKI AREAS WHERE AVALANCHE HAZARD REDUCTION MEASURES ARE PERFORMED.
current conditions

Wow... another great storm for the eastern front! While most areas across the range received 10"-14" of snow, Trial Lake was the epicenter with 20" and about 2" of water. Currently, it's still snowing, temperatures starting cooling off around midnight and are in the low teens and single digits. It'll be brutal along the high ridges where west-northwest winds are blowing 30-50 mph. You don't have to hang it out today to get great pow. Five star riding conditions are found on low angle, low elevation, sheltered slopes and meadows.

The data above is a 24 hour run for Trial Lake.

Real time wind, snow, and temperatures for the Uinta's are found here.

Snowpack observations and trip reports are found here.
recent activity

Our mid elevation terrain has come to life. Chris Brown snapped this image above of a natural storm slab that happened in a 20 minute absence from the area. As Chris noted... "went by this spot around 14:30, no avalanche, 20 minutes later when passed by again the slab had released." (Brown photo) More on his day in Upper Weber Canyon here.

A full list of recent Uinta 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

I'll keep it simple. We've got no shortage of snow and for the past two days, winds have been cranking from every direction. Both new and old drifts sensitive to our additional weight have formed at nearly every elevation and aspect and they'll be sensitive to our additional weight. They're big... they're burly... they're bad, and they're connected, meaning they'll break above us or even adjacent to the slope we're riding. In addition, today's slabs are gonna break deep and wide and once triggered, will easily ruin your day. It doesn't mean you can't ride... it does mean you'll wanna steer clear of steep, wind drifted terrain and be on the look out for and avoid any rounded, fat, pillows of snow, especially if they feel or sound hollow like a drum. In addition, gather some BETA during your travels. Tweak a couple of road cuts and see how they're reacting and take that information to help you decide where to ride safely today.


Pretty easy to see by the 24 hour data from Windy Peak.... winds have been all over the map!
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

I'm thinking yesterday's storm is gonna put our weak layers to the test. While we haven't seen or heard of any recent slides breaking into sugary snow deep in our pack, this latest trifecta of snow, wind, and water weight is likely the tipping point. That said, the kind of terrain I'd consider avoiding is steep, rocky, upper elevation slopes facing the north half of the compass. Places like Currant Creek Peak, pictured below, immediately come to mind.

weather

Snow starts to wind down as the day progresses with another couple inches expected. Northwest winds blow in the 30's and 40's along the high peaks and temperatures only climb into the low teens. Overnight lows under clearing skies crash to negative territory. High pressure builds for the end of the week with another significant storm slated for late in the weekend.
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]

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.

The information in this advisory expires 24 hours after the date and time posted, but will be updated by 7:00 AM on Friday January 6th.