Forecast: Ogden Area Mountains - Utah Avalanche Center

Forecast for the Ogden Area Mountains

Issued by Trent Meisenheimer on
Tuesday morning, March 22, 2022

A MODERATE avalanche danger exists on steep west to north to east facing aspects at all elevations. Here, you can trigger avalanches 1-3' deep that fail on a persistent weak layer of faceted snow. You can trigger avalanches remotely, meaning from a distance or from below. These are not avalanches you want to mess with.

There is also a MODERATE avalanche danger on all aspects at the upper elevations where there are sensitive pockets of wind-drifted snow.

Low

Moderate

Considerable

High

Extreme

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Special Announcements

A new piece called " A Reckoning " talks about the recent string of human-triggered avalanches. (If you missed the essay Deus Ex Machina, published just at the onset of close calls and accidents, you'll find it HERE)

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Weather and Snow

Under clear skies, the overnight mountain temperatures dipped into the upper teens to low 20's °F. Winds have been from the northwest and blowing at speeds of 5-15 mph across the upper elevation terrain. At 9,500' the wind is blowing a bit stronger at speeds of 20-30 mph from the northwest.

Expect plenty of sunshine today with mountain temperatures rising into the mid to low 30's °F. Winds will remain from the northwest but slow in speed throughout the day. We warm up drastically later in the week.

Recent Avalanches

No recent avalanches have been reported from the Ogden area.

In the Wasatch - on sunny aspects, backcountry observers noted long-running wet loose avalanches that ran on top of old sun crusts. In some cases, these "sluffs" ran long distances. Across the upper elevations, many observers reported sensitive soft to hard drifts of wind-blown snow (wind slabs) that were roughly 12" deep by 30-70' wide (Nalli photo below).

Two or three people took rides in avalanches yesterday and luckily no one was injured. One on Pioneer Peak, another on Little Superior. There were about 20 observations from yesterday. Be sure to check them all out HERE.

Type

Location

Likelihood

Size

Description

Triggering avalanches 1-3' deep on steep slopes facing west through north and east at all elevations remains possible. These avalanches are failing on a persistent weak layer (PWL) that formed during the January/February drought. An observation from Richie Schumacher North Fork Park shows the presence of the PWL on Ben Lomond. And another observation from Brain Smith also showing this layering from North Ogden Divide found HERE.

Although there have not been any recent avalanches failing on this PWL in the Ogden mountains, Sunday's avalanche in the Logan mountains appeared to fail on this PWL and there has been continued avalanche activity on the PWL in the Salt Lake mountains as seen in the video below of Bruce Tremper.

My strategy is to avoid steep slopes steeper than 30° where there is faceted snow buried.

Type

Location

Likelihood

Size

Description

You may continue to find pockets of sensitive wind-drifted snow at the upper elevations. These fresh wind drifts may run long distances on slopes with smooth crusts underneath. Yesterday, many backcountry observers triggered wind slabs that were both soft and hard. These wind slabs were roughly 12" deep and up to 70' wide. As always, look for and avoid slopes that look rounded and pillowy.

General Announcements

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.

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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.

Observations and Avalanches

Backcountry Emergency Procedures