Utah avalanche conditions remain dangerous as professionals urge avoiding backcountry
Feb 23, 2025, 8:03 PM | Updated: 8:15 pm
A screenshot of the Utah Avalanche Center website shows Utah avalanche conditions ratings for Feb. 23, 2025. Visit UAC's website for the latest information.
SALT LAKE CITY— As Utah avalanche conditions remain dangerous across the state, avalanche professionals are urging people to stay out of the backcountry.
A video posted to the Utah Avalanche Center’s Instagram on Feb. 21 featured professionals, who shared warnings guided by their expertise on the current state of Utah avalanche conditions.
“I get the want to go do cool, new things. It’s really not the time,” Avalanche Educator Jack Stauss said in the video. “It’s still time to step back, reassess, and keep watching what’s happening to the snowpack.”
View this post on Instagram
A persistent weak layer has contributed to dangerous Utah avalanche conditions all season. Sunday’s forecast said UAC is currently tracking four of them.
A screenshot of the Utah Avalanche Center’s Feb. 23, 2025 forecast for the Salt Lake Region says persistent weak layer is the number one avalanche problem.
Allison Conover, a ski guide and avalanche educator, said the persistent weak layer gives a “nasty feedback loop.”
“The Wasatch is typically stable enough that we’re able to get away with things a lot of the time,” Conover said in the video. She noted that backcountry users often get lucky when they recreate atop a snowpack plagued by persistent weak layers without getting hurt.
“This season is so different,” Stauss said. “We have such a different snowpack setup.”
“Too many close calls” amid dangerous Utah avalanche conditions
Cody Hughes, a backcountry ski and snowboard guide and an avalanche forecaster, said there have been “way too many close calls.” In the video, he also noted several recent avalanche-related deaths in the backcountry.
For example, two men were swept up in an avalanche yesterday. Although they were rescued by Wasatch County Search and Rescue, others haven’t been so lucky.
One skier died on Feb. 8 after getting caught in a slide in Big Cottonwood Canyon. A separate incident killed a snowmobiler on Feb. 3.
“We need to come together and ask ourselves ‘Is it really worth it?'” Hughes said. “Let’s wait. Give it 10 days, give it 14 days until we don’t see any more avalanches triggered on persistent weak layers and collectively, as a community, start stepping out together.”
Avalanche Educator and Forecaster Joey Manship offered advice for skiing in dangerous avalanche conditions. He urged video viewers to avoid being on and below slopes that are greater than 30° steep.
“My system is thinking ‘Where am I gonna find good riding?’ And then matching that with our avalanche problems right now,” Manship said.
In the video, he recommended sticking to slopes less than 30° steep. That includes staying out from under them.
Within an avalanche path, there are three zones: start zone, track, and runout zone.
According to Avalanche.org, which is managed by the U.S. Forest Service and American Avalanche Association, avalanches can be triggered from their lowest portion, the runout zone.
Current Utah avalanche conditions
On Sunday, UAC’s forecast rated avalanche danger in the Salt Lake Region as considerable.
Trent Meisenheimer, the forecaster who authored Sunday morning’s report, referred to the conditions as “tricky and dangerous.”
Meisenheimer also explained in the report that slab avalanches may fail several feet below the surface of the snow.
Additionally, Sunday’s Salt Lake forecast noted four close calls were reported on Saturday. All four instances led to victims being caught and carried, all leading to injuries.
Following persistent weak layer, the number two problem in the Salt Lake area was wind-drifted snow. Meisenheimer’s forecast advised using caution and keeping an eye out for soft slabs, as plenty of snow is available to be picked up by wind.
As Spring begins to arrive, the sun is becoming stronger, leading to the third avalanche problem: wet snow.
The following areas were also rated as considerable in Sunday’s forecast:
- Uintas
- Provo
- Skyline
- Moab
The Logan and Ogden regions were rated with moderate danger.
Regardless of rating, all of the areas shared the same number one problem: persistent weak layer.
No forecast was provided for the Southwest and Abajos regions, as UAC’s website said the organization does not regularly provide them. However, they do collect reports of avalanche activity.
Avalanche professionals advise backcountry users to check the forecast each day, even when they aren’t planning on heading into the mountains. Familiarizing yourself with current Utah avalanche conditions can help make smart choices and prevent accidents.
