Avalanche danger moderate across Utah amid warm temperatures

SALT LAKE CITY — As the Wasatch Front experienced warm temperatures on Monday, avalanche danger across Utah was rated as moderate by Utah Avalanche Center forecasters. 

Per UAC’s Monday forecast for the Salt Lake Region, observers noted “surprisingly warm temperatures” throughout the area. In the Salt Lake Valley, temperatures hovered in the 50s, according to the KSL Weather Center. 

In comparison, a post on Snowbird’s website said temperatures on the mountain were around 44 degrees. Snowbird is one of four resorts in the Cottonwood Canyons. Although avalanche danger ratings don’t usually apply to ski resorts, temperatures recorded within them can provide insights into daily backcountry temperatures.  

Salt Lake avalanche danger

According to the Salt Lake Region report, which was issued by UAC Forecaster Dave Kelly, the rating applied to all elevations and slope aspects. In his report, Kelly urged backcountry users to avoid terrain steeper than 30 degrees, especially later in the day. 

Avalanche.org explained that a considerable rating means human-triggered avalanches are likely. The rating, often signaled by orange, sits in the middle of the avalanche danger scale. 

Statistically speaking, most avalanche fatalities happen on days when the forecast rates avalanche danger as considerable. To avoid disaster, professionals with UAC recommend making “conservative choices” and sticking to lower-angled slopes. 

In UAC’s Monday forecast, Kelly wrote that the surface of the snow in the Salt Lake Region is “worn out.”

Additionally, he cautioned backcountry users about collapsing snow, which is a telltale sign of unstable snow. 

Collapsing snow is also sometimes referred to as “whumpfing” because of the sound it makes as it caves in. 

Kelly noted reports of collapsing snow in terrain near the middle of the mountains. 

“This is a sign that the snowpack is still settling out,” Kelly said.

On theme for the season, Salt Lake’s number one avalanche concern was persistent weak layer. Yesterday’s forecast said that UAC is watching four of them.

Per Avalanche.org, persistent weak layers can cause slab avalanches as long as months after they are buried. They are the cause of most avalanches. 

UAC’s forecast said persistent weak layers complicate avalanche conditions, and are most likely to break on spots with thinner cover or those that have already avalanched. 

“We are not done with this buried persistent weak layer quite yet and as much as the mindset in late February typically turns to open-season, it’s not that type of season,” Kelly wrote. “Give this snowpack some time to settle into its spring coat.” 

What about avalanche danger in the rest of the state? 

The rest of the regularly-forecasted regions in Utah were also rated as considerable. All of them also displayed persistent weak layers as the number one problem. 

According to the KSL Weather Center, the Moab area saw temperatures in the 40s. 

In a video attached to the Moab forecast, Forecaster Eric Trenbeath called the snowpack “possibly one of the worst snowpack structures [he’d] ever seen.” 

Trenbeth was examining the snowpack on a northeast aspect in the La Sal mountains. He said he was at about 10,700 feet in elevation before he continued to explain the conditions. 

Echoing other professionals, he advised avoiding slopes greater than 30 degrees steep.