Avalanche Advisory
Advisory: Uintas Area Mountains Issued by Craig Gordon for Sunday - February 2, 2014 - 5:47am
bottom line

We have two distinctly different avalanche dragons today resulting in very different outcomes-

Manageable- fresh wind drifts in the wind zone where a MODERATE avalanche danger exists and human triggered avalanches are possible on steep, wind drifted slopes..

Not manageable- any avalanche that breaks to old snow near the ground. 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.
special announcement

Join the Utah Avalanche Center and Boondockers on Feb 20 and 22 for another avalanche & riding skills class. Registration is open now. Note that we changed the date from the original class posting.

current conditions

An inch or two of snow fell yesterday and skies cleared overnight, allowing temperatures to crash like a bad stock option. Currently, most regions are near zero degrees, though cold air pooling in areas like Mirror and Lily Lake have allowed temperatures to dip to -17 degrees. Winds are light and variable, blowing just 5-10 mph even along the high ridges. Riding and turning conditions are the best they've been all year!

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 wierd.

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

The light density storm snow is well behaved and avalanche problems within the new snow are quite manageable. I'm finding shallow soft slabs on the leeward side of upper elevation ridges that predictably break at or below my skis and sled. I think you'll find the same conditions today, but remember... the Uinta's are a big place and as always look for and avoid any fat, rounded, pillow of 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

I'm psyched to see deeper snowpack zones show encouraging signs of strengthening. Problem is... we don't trigger deep, dangerous avalanches where the pack is thick and strong. We trigger unmanageably scary avalanches where the pack is thin and weak. 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

High pressure builds today, giving us partly cloudy skies, light winds, and temperatures climbing into the upper teens. Southwesterly winds increase slightly late in the day as a weak system grazes the state producing a flurry or two. Increasing clouds late Monday signal a period of active weather for the region. A good shot of snow is slated for Tuesday then a midweek break with another more significant system possible for late in the week.
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 craig@utahavalanchecenter.org, 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 craig@utahavalanchecenter.org

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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 Wednesday Feb. 5, 2014