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Forecast for the Provo Area Mountains

Trent Meisenheimer
Issued by Trent Meisenheimer on
Saturday morning, March 2, 2019
A MODERATE AVALANCHE DANGER exists on steep, wind drifted slopes at the upper elevations for triggering a wind slab avalanche. This problem will be confined to the upper elevation ridgelines and steep terrain features. There is also a MODERATE danger of triggering a larger avalanche breaking on a persistent weak layer near the ground, most likely on a slope with a shallow snow pack. Out of the wind effected snow at lower elevations the avalanche danger is LOW.
Cornices have grown massive and could break off at anytime. Avoid being on or underneath these giants.
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Special Announcements
Enjoy spring skiing at Snowbasin Resort. The UAC has discount Snowbasin tickets available.
Like clockwork, the Week in Review has arrived. Catch up on the past week’s weather and avalanches.
Announcement: Join Drew Hardesty at 7PM on Wednesday, March 6 at Rocksteady Bodyworks for an interactive discussion on the State of the Snowpack.
Weather and Snow
Overnight, a very weak cold front passed overhead dropping the temperatures and added another 3-5" (0.53" h20) of snow throughout the range. Westerly winds are currently blowing at speeds of 10-15 mph gusting into the upper 20's across the peaks. Mid elevation wind speeds are 5-10 mph. Current mountain temperatures are in the upper teens to low twenties °F.
For today, we will see a quick break this morning before the winds switch back to the southwest by this afternoon. Clouds will begin to increase and bring light snow to the mountains. Accumulations will be modest and we can expect 2-4" of new snow by this evening. The southwest winds are forecasted 10-15 mph at the upper elevations.
Recent Avalanches
No new avalanches were reported from the backcountry yesterday. List of all recent observations can be found HERE.
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Avalanche Problem #1
Wind Drifted Snow
Type
Location
Likelihood
Size
Description
Yesterday, in the Wasatch I was finding the new snow was bonded well to the old snow surface and wind slabs were not an issue where I traveled. However, with another 2-4" of new snow overnight and moderate wind speeds one should be on the lookout for recent deposits of wind drifted snow. In the steep terrain use slope cuts and terrain management skills to get down and off the upper ridges where you're most likely to find a small wind slab. Triggering any small wind slab could have the potential to step down into deeper weak layers in the snowpack.
The real problem in the Provo range is not the recent drifts of wind blown snow - see persistent slab avalanche (below) for the real killer.
Avalanche Problem #2
Persistent Weak Layer
Type
Location
Likelihood
Size
Description
Assessing the snowpack in the Provo area mountains in avalanche terrain at mid and upper elevations on NW, N, NE, E aspects (and upper elevation SE) is difficult. Recent natural avalanches have broken at the ground in the Provo mountains. It's hard to assess the likelihood of triggering one of these avalanches, because the consequences of getting involved in one is likely deadly. The only mitigation strategy we have is to avoid avalanche terrain for now.
General Announcements
CLICK HERE FOR MORE GENERAL INFO AND FAQ
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.
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