Check out our Holiday Auction
Ad
The National Forest Service Logo
icon-add Observation
Forecasts
Logan Ogden Salt Lake Provo Uintas Skyline Moab Abajos Weather Archives How to read the forecast
Observations & Avalanches
Submit Observation Observations Explorer All Observations Avalanches Fatalities Weather Place Names Map Archives
Education
Avalanche Awareness Develop Skills On-Snow Courses Resources and Tutorials
Events
Store
About
Contact Who we are Core Values Staff Board of Directors Past Forecasters Sponsors Annual Reports Sign In
Blog
icon-add Observation
Donate / Join

Forecast for the Logan Area Mountains

Toby Weed
Issued by Toby Weed on
Monday morning, March 21, 2022
Areas with unstable snow, dangerous avalanche conditions, and CONSIDERABLE danger exist on northerly facing upper and mid elevation slopes steeper than 30°. People could trigger dangerous slab avalanches, up to two feet deep and a couple hundred feet wide, failing on a buried persistent weak layer of faceted snow. Yesterday's wind drifted snow at upper elevations, adding to the overload on slopes with poor snow structure, and people also could trigger small slabs of wind drifted snow and/or cornice falls in steep upper elevation terrain. The snow is stable and the danger LOW in sunny lower and mid elevation terrain.
*Careful snowpack evaluation, cautious route-finding, and conservative decision making are essential for safe backcountry travel.
Low
Moderate
Considerable
High
Extreme
Learn how to read the forecast here
Special Announcements
Please help support avalanche forecasting throughout Utah. Donate to the Spring Campaign to help raise the funds to support the forecasting you rely on...... HERE
Weather and Snow
Dangerous avalanche conditions and areas with unstable snow exist in some areas, mainly on northerly facing upper and mid elevation slopes. Heavy snow in early March overloaded slopes with buried persistent weak layers consisting of sugary faceted snow, and additional accumulation and drifting over the weekend added weight and depth to an existing slab layer. Dangerous avalanche conditions exist on northerly facing slopes with this poor snow structure, and people are likely trigger dangerous avalanches again today. The snow is stable and the danger LOW on slopes in sunny lower and mid elevation terrain.
The 8400' Tony Grove Snotel reports 15°F, and 4 inches of accumulation in the last 24 hours. There is 72 inches of total snow at the site, containing 84% of normal SWE for the date. The 9700' CSI Logan Peak weather station is still not updating, but the wind is blowing lightly out of the north on James Peak this morning. Spring is officially here and the upcoming week will bring fair weather and increasingly warm temperatures to the Logan Zone.
  • Today expect sunny conditions, with high temperatures at 8500' around 30°F, and 10 to 20 mph northwest winds with 30 mph gusts.
  • It will be mostly clear tonight, with low temperatures around 15°F, and 9 to 14 mph northwest winds.
  • It will be mostly sunny again tomorrow, with high temperatures around 38°F and 10 to 18 mph north-northwest wind.
  • Looks like fair spring weather with increasingly warm temperatures through the upcoming week. Mountain daytime temperatures could climb to around 50°F by the end of the work week.
Recent Avalanches
  • A rider in a party of 6 was side-hilling on a north facing slope at around 8700' in Crescent Lake Canyon (Franklin Basin) when he triggered a 2' deep soft slab avalanche that failed on our widespread buried PWL. He was caught, carried around 150' and mostly buried, with only top of helmet and waving right arm out of the snow. He was quickly recovered by his companions, but his sled sustained some significant damage and was buried about 30' above the rider on the uphill side of a large tree. See the report HERE
  • Two human triggered avalanches that failed on a buried persistent weak layer were reported Saturday from just north of the Idaho State Line. The avalanches were triggered unintentionally by the same party in the Franklin Basin Area on a north-northeast facing slope at around 9200' in elevation. Report is HERE
  • A reported large avalanche was triggered by snowmobile riders on Friday, also on a north-northeast facing slope at around 9000,' in St. Charles Canyon, in the Snowslide Canyon Area, and we received a report of a similar, sled triggered avalanche that occurred north of the Idaho State Line in the Egan Basin Area of Beaver Creek, also on Friday.
I rider was mostly buried and he and his bent and broken sled had to be excavated by companions in an avalanche accident yesterday in Crescent Lake Canyon, in the Franklin Basin Area just south of the Idaho state line.
This is the crown of one of Saturday's triggered slab avalanches in the Franklin Basin Area. The avalanche failed on a buried persistent weak layer of faceted snow.
Check out all the recent backcountry observations and many recent avalanche reports from across Utah HERE
Ad
Avalanche Problem #1
Persistent Weak Layer
Type
Location
Likelihood
Size
Description
Last week's heavy snow created a cohesive and harder slab on widespread preexisting layers of very weak faceted snow. In some areas, the overload of heavy new snow was just enough to activate these layers and cause dangerous slab avalanches. More snow and drifting occurred yesterday, continuing to load slopes with poor snow structure. On slopes facing the north half of the compass in some areas, people are likely to trigger dangerous slab avalanches failing on this buried persistent weak layer. Although becoming less frequent, observers in the Logan Zone last week reported signs of instability in some areas, including audible collapsing and cracking.
  • In some isolated areas, avalanches still might be triggered remotely or from a distance.
Very weak faceted snow is buried and preserved in many areas. Poor snow structure exists where a slab of harder snow sits above these buried layers of loose faceted snow, and in some areas, stability tests show unstable conditions.
Avalanche Problem #2
Wind Drifted Snow
Type
Location
Likelihood
Size
Description
People could trigger small slab avalanches of wind drifted snow and/or cornice falls in drifted upper elevation terrain.
Additional Information
  • Now is a great time to practice your avalanche rescue skills. Thanks to the generous support of Northstar, the Franklin Basin Beacon Training Park is up and running. The park is located directly west of the parking lot and is open for anyone to use. All you need is your beacon and probe. Please do not dig up the transmitters.
  • Always follow safe backcountry travel protocols. Go one person at a time in avalanche terrain, while the rest of your party watches from a safe area. (practice anytime while traveling on or under backcountry slopes steeper than 30°)
  • Check your avalanche rescue equipment, change your batteries, and practice often with your backcountry partners.
    Check slope angles, and to avoid avalanche terrain stay off of and out from under slopes steeper than 30° and adjacent slopes. Video Here
General Announcements
Special thank you to Polaris and Northstar...Video Here
Who's up for some free avalanche training? Get a refresher, become better prepared for an upcoming avalanche class, or just boost your skills. Go to https://learn.kbyg.org/ and scroll down to Step 2 for a series of interactive online avalanche courses produced by the UAC.
  • Check out all the upcoming education classes and clinics HERE.
  • Please submit your observations from the backcountry HERE.
This information does not apply to developed ski areas or highways where avalanche control is normally done. This forecast is from the U.S.D.A. Forest Service, which is solely responsible for its content. This forecast describes general avalanche conditions and local variations always occur.
< Previous forecast
Next forecast >