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Sunday - April 20, 2008 - 7:11 am
The information in this advisory expires 24 hours after the date and time posted, but will be updated by 7:00 am on Wednesdays, Saturdays, Sundays and Holidays
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Thank you… Thank you… Thank you!
I’d like to thank those of you who helped to support this program all season. In particular, big thanks goes out to Utah State Parks and Recreation, the Kamas and Evanston Ranger Districts, the Utah Snowmobile Association, Tri-City Performance and Polaris Snowmobiles, Weller’s Recreation and Ski-Doo, Park City Powder Cats, the National Weather Service, BRORA, Backcountry Access and all of you who were diligent in calling in timely snowpack and avalanche observations. Also, very special thanks go to Tri-City Performance and Polaris, along with Weller’s Recreation and Ski-Doo and The Utah Snowmobile Association for stepping up to the plate and partnering to provide two new sleds for the Utah Avalanche Center’s western Uinta avalanche forecasting program.
Finally, huge thanks go to my colleagues Ted Scroggin and Grant Helegeson for their outstanding contributions to this program. Their snow and avalanche observations, illustrative photos and education efforts helped save lives this winter… yup, you guys rock! In addition, their professionalism, dedication and expertise helped make this program extremely successful and we look forward to growing and expanding the program for next year.
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| LINKS TO MORE INFO: |
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Lots of snow remains at mid and upper elevations where the snowpack averages about 110% of normal. Temperatures remain cold and great powder riding can still be found on high elevation, north facing slopes. While we’ve ended our regularly scheduled avalanche advisories for the season, of course that doesn’t mean that there won’t be any more avalanches. In fact, spring snowstorms are quite common in Utah and it’s not unusual for the mountains to receive significant snowfall well into the month of June. Dry, new snow avalanches frequently occur during and right after a storm, but with warm temperatures and strong sunshine, it doesn’t take long for the snow to heat up, increasing the chance of wet avalanches. While our snowpack strengthened significantly since the beginning of the season, should it experience several nights without a good solid refreeze, deep wet slab avalanches will be possible, especially in steep, rocky terrain. Also, cornices are large, tender and unpredictable, breaking back further than you might expect, so as temperatures rise you’ll want to steer clear of these monsters.
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| RECENT AVALANCHES AND SNOWPACK INFO >>> |
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Click here for recent pics and pits.
I’ve posted my initial accident report on the Smith Basin New Year’s Eve avalanche accident. Click here for details. Thanks to Wasatch County Search and Rescue for all the help getting to the accident site.
I’ve also posted an accident report detailing the Christmas Day, Super Bowl avalanche accident. It can be found here.
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PROBABILITY |
SIZE |
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Increasing
Danger |
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Decreasing
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| over the next 24 hrs |
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In the absence of my avalanche advisory here are a few pointers to help you make your own snowpack and avalanche danger evaluations. In general you can count on several types of avalanche conditions in the spring. Whenever we get a storm the avalanche danger will rise, as the new snow might not bond well to the existing hard, slick crust it falls on. As always, recent avalanche activity as well as cracking and collapsing of the snowpack are dead giveaways the snow is unstable. Even if these clues don’t present themselves, be sure to do some tests on smaller slopes that are similar in aspect, elevation and slope angle to what you want to ride on. Choose test slopes that have minimal consequences, especially after a significant snowfall. A well placed slope cut will give you a good feel for the stability of the slope. If there is much wind associated with the storm or if there is snow available for transport before it gets cooked into place, expect to find potentially unstable wind slabs on leeward slopes. You know the drill- be flexible with your travel plans, gather as much snow information as you can snow and keep in mind; slopes of all aspect and elevation need to be re-evaluated throughout the day. When the sun first comes out and the snow goes through its initial rapid warm up, avalanches will be likely on steep slopes. You can expect the usual round of wet slides and occasional wet slabs, but fortunately new snow instabilities tend to stabilize rather quickly in the spring due to the warm temperatures. As usual, you’ll want to get off of and out from underneath steep slopes during the heat of the day and avoid terrain traps such as gullies or steep road cuts.
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Use the links provided to help assist you in your own weather forecast endeavors.
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| GENERAL ANNOUNCEMENTS >>> |
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If you’re getting out and about and see or trigger any avalanches or just want to let me know how the riding conditions were, please email me at cgordonski@hotmail.com or call 801-231-2170. It’s not too early to book a free snowmobile specific avalanche awareness class for next year and you can give me a call or email and I’d be happy to tailor a talk for your group.
The information in this advisory expires 24 hours after the date and time posted, but will be updated next fall when the snow starts flying again. This advisory is also available during the winter season by calling 1-800-648-7433 or 1-888-999-4019.
Have a safe spring and summer!
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| The information in this advisory is from the U.S. Forest Service, which is solely responsible for its content. This advisory describes general avalanche conditions and local variations always occur. |
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This
advisory provided by the Wasatch Cache National Forest,
in partnership with:
Forest Service Utah Avalanche Center, Utah State Parks, The Friends of the Utah Avalanche Center, Tri-City Performance, Polaris, Weller's Recreation, Ski-Doo, the Utah Snowmobile Association, the National Weather Service, BRORA, and Backcountry Access.
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