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Forecast for the Logan Area Mountains

Toby Weed
Issued by Toby Weed on
Wednesday morning, March 31, 2021
Snow is stable and avalanche danger LOW in the backcountry. Avalanches are unlikely, but should still be included in the list of inherent hazards of mountain travel today. Mountaineers could trigger small but consequential slab avalanches of stiff, recently drifted snow in extreme terrain. Small loose wet avalanches are possible this afternoon on very steep sunny slopes near cliffs or rock bands where the snow surface is soft and saturated.
USE NORMAL CAUTION
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Weather and Snow
About an inch of dusty yellow snow fell and was drifted into camouflage patterns of white and yellow at upper elevations by Monday's strong winds. It's 16°F and there is 65 inches of total snow containing only 74% of normal SWE at the 8400' Tony Grove Snotel. I'm reading 11°F and west winds are blowing around 20 mph at the 9700' CSI Logan Peak weather station. Cold temperatures have solidly set up the snow which had become warmed, softened, and saturated over the weekend. A high pressure system will build into the region this week, and mountain temperatures will rise dramatically each day through Saturday when 9000' temperatures could be close to 60°F !
Spring has hit the Cache, and we expect mountain temperatures to soar this week as a strong high pressure system sets up over the region.
Avalanche problems today will be limited to shallow and stiff wind slabs at upper elevations from Monday's wind, and perhaps some small wet loose activity on very steep slopes near cliffs. The more immediate problem for mountaineers and riders will be "slide for life" conditions on sunny slopes that have solidly refrozen with a hard smooth surface. If you plan an alpine adventure, you should bring your ice ax and crampons and know how to self-arrest. Many slopes will not soften up enough for me to try to ride on a sled today.
Camouflage patterns of white and yellow (1" dusty new snow) at upper elevations created by Monday's strong winds.
Recent Avalanches
Lots of people made it out into the backcountry over the weekend and only a few encountered avalanche issues:
  1. A couple skiers tried a run on the Folly in Logan Dry late in the day Saturday (3-27-2021). and triggered manageable wet sluffs that created a sizable pile of debris visible from across Cache Valley. The Folly faces southwest and the top of the slope is a little above 9000' in elevation.
  2. One party reported intentionally triggering four soft wind slabs, 1 to 1.5' deep and 30 to 40 feet wide in extreme north facing terrain (chutes running through cliffs) at upper elevations in the Central Bear River Range on Friday, 3-26-2021.
I took this photo from my front porch in West Logan at 6:30 Saturday evening... 2 skiers showed Cache Valley that people could indeed trigger wet sluffs entraining large piles of saturated surface snow in sunny terrain.
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Avalanche Problem #1
Normal Caution
Type
Location
Likelihood
Size
Description
  1. An ice ax and crampons are recommended for alpine travel, and people should know how to self-arrest if they venture into very steep terrain.
  2. Small loose wet avalanches are possible this afternoon on very steep sunny slopes near cliffs or rock bands where the snow surface is soft and saturated.
  3. Southwest winds created small stiff wind slabs in and around terrain features like sub-ridges, gullies, and cliffs. Hard wind slabs are often not very sensitive, and some may allow you to get out on them before releasing. Even a small wind slab avalanche could send you for a dangerous "slide for life" fall on the smooth frozen snow surface.
  4. Large, overhanging ridge-top cornices have grown recently, and people might be fooled into getting too close to the edge. Cornices tend to break back further than you might expect.
Here is Mark's take on the current situation;
Additional Information
General Spring Travel Advise:
As daytime temperatures rise, softening the snow, the danger of wet avalanches will increase, so its a good idea to get in the habit of an early start and to plan on heading down before things get too sloppy.
-Watch for trees or other terrain traps below you if you venture onto steep slopes.
-If you start sinking deeply into wet snow, or if the snow you are traveling on becomes unsupportable due to the heat, it's time to leave.
Do you have the essential avalanche rescue gear (transceiver, probe, and shovel) and do you know how to use them? Watch this video to see how the three pieces of equipment work together. HERE
Please keep practicing with the Beacon Training Park at the Franklin Basin Trailhead. Test yourself and your riding partners. It is free, fun, and easy to use.
General Announcements
Visit this website with information about Responsible Winter Recreation by the Utah Office of Outdoor Recreation.
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Remember your information can save lives. If you see anything we should know about, please help us out by submitting snow and avalanche observations....HERE. You can also call us at 801-524-5304, email by clicking HERE, or include #utavy in your Instagram, or @UAClogan on Twitter.
We will update this forecast by around 7:30 Friday morning.
This forecast is from the USDA Forest Service, which is solely responsible for its content. The forecast describes general avalanche conditions and local variations always occur.
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