Avalanche Advisory
Advisory: Uintas Area Mountains Issued by Craig Gordon for Saturday - April 7, 2018 - 3:34am
bottom line

HEADS UP- FREAKY WEATHER... MAKES FREAKY AVALANCHE CONDITIONS. Rain on our snowpack will create dangerous avalanche conditions on all snow covered slopes, on all aspects, and all elevations.

As the storm materializes and rain falls at the highest elevations. the avalanche danger will rapidly rise to CONSIDERABLE. Both natural and human triggered avalanches are LIKELY on all aspects and all elevations. Steep, rocky terrain facing the north half of the compass and slopes with a thin, weak snowpack are particularly vulnerable. Deep, dangerous, tree snapping avalanches are nearly certain in terrain with these kind of characteristics.
special announcement

This Sunday April 8th will be the last of the regularly scheduled advisories for the western Uinta Mountains.
current conditions

A very moist and mild westerly flow delivered an inch or two of wet, heavy snow yesterday. This morning under a blanket of thick clouds, current temperatures are mild, hovering right around freezing and a rain/snow mix is falling. West and southwest are relatively light, blowing in the teens and 20's along the high ridges. Riding and turning conditions are gonna be a bit underwhelming... might be a good day to get some projects off your plate and regroup with a little fresh snow tomorrow.

Above are 24 hour temperatures and snow depth in Chalk Creek along with winds and temperatures from Windy Peak. More remote Uinta weather stations are found here

Well this is a heck of a way to run a winter. Pictured above... a tale of two trailheads. Common theme... while still closed, they're both toast and dry for miles.

A great body of recent trip reports, observations, and snow data here.

recent activity

No significant avalanche activity to report from yesterday.

A full list of avalanches 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

Let's face it, our troubled snowpack has dealt with a lot this year. From infrequent storms, to early season raincrusts with facets sandwiched in between, and now a final test of its strength and endurance.... a soaking rain is on tap.... yikes! These are uncharted waters for us and I don't know exactly how it'll play out. What I do know is this- rain on snow is no Es Bueno and I bet we see some unusual avalanche activity, especially on slopes that have had a shallow, weak snowpack all season. Deep, dangerous, tree snapping avalanches that break to the dirt and remove the entire seasons snowpack aren't out of the question and once triggered, these slides will be piling up huge amounts of bone twisting debris.
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

With mild temperatures in place along with rain and snow in the forecast, the danger for wet slides and sluffs increases throughout the day. Any avalanche triggered can easily gouge into weaker layers of snow buried deeper in the snowpack, creating a much larger avalanche then you might expect.
weather

Moisture streaming inland off the Pacific maintains a warm, wet day. High temperatures climb into 40's and southwest winds blow in the 30's and 40's along the high ridges. Colder air arrives late this afternoon and snow levels lower tonight before tapering off by Sunday morning. Snow and water totals could be similar... with an inch or two from each department.

general announcements

The information in this advisory expires 24 hours after the date and time posted, but will be updated by 7:00 AM Sunday April 8th, 2018.

If you're getting out and about, please let me know what you're seeing especially if you see or trigger and avalanche. I can be reached at [email protected] or 801-231-2170

It's also a good time to set up one of our very popular avalanche awareness classes. Reach out to me and I'll make it happen.

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.