Uintas

The good news... contiguous pieces of snow are easy to identify and confined to upper elevation, shady slopes. The bad news... those are exactly the types of slopes that offer the greatest danger, because where it's white... it's super weak underneath yesterday's storm snow! And though the avalanche danger is generally LOW, please don't get lured into thinking there's not enough snow to avalanche. Steep, wind-drifted slopes in the wind zone above treeline is bullseye terrain and I bet there's a wind drift or two lurking on the leeward side of a chute or gully that'll react to our additional weight.

It's extremely thin out there and our snowpack is weak, so I gotta remember... once triggered, today's slides will break deeper and wider that I might expect and even a small piece of snow will pack a powerful, season ending punch.

Avalanche Awareness Week starts December 1st... that's today! We kick off the week with free community avalanche rescue and first aid practice at Sugarhouse Park on Monday, December 1 from 4 PM - 7 PM. Events are happening daily across the state to prepare you for winter and get you thinking about avalanche safety. Find out about all our events HERE. And don't forget the Utah Snow and Avalanche Workshop is Saturday, December 6 with in person and virtual options!

But wait... there's more!

• December 20 Introduction to Avalanche Rescue Course
• January 02-03 Backcountry 101
• January 09-12 Stay & Play Avalanche Course Retreat

See All Courses & Events Here

Prior to yesterday's storm a handful of folks were tagging roadside attractions near Bald Mountain Pass, with one recently triggered facet-lanche spotted on a steep, rocky, breakover in Murdock Bowl.

View All Observations Here

Nowcast- With mostly clear skies overhead, a glowing and growing Cold Moon casts beautiful light on our mountains this morning which proudly display a fresh coat of white paint. While yesterday's storm wasn't exactly a barnburner it did deliver a North Slope favored 8" of snow with just .50" H2O. Unfortunately the south half of the range didn't get the powder party invite until late in the day, couldn't find a fashionable outfit for the affair, and is a bit self conscious to report only about 4" of low density storm storm. Meanwhile near the peaks, northwest winds blow in the 20's and temperatures start the day in the single digits.

Forecast- It'll be a glorious day in the mountains with mostly sunny skies and temperatures climbing into the low to mid 20's. Northerly winds blowing in the 20's along the high ridges will add a bit of a bite to the already crisp air.

Futurecast - Increasing clouds and wind are on tap for Tuesday as another system, similar to this past weekend's storm, slides into the region. A warmer, potentially wetter storm is on tap to round out the work week.

A little lean, but it's obvious Bald Mountain has been to the gym recently and those broad, well defined shoulders reflect the effort :)

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Prior to the weekend storm, Ted got some eyes on Double Hill and reports spotty, shallow, and generally weak snow prevailing on the mid and upper elevation shady's. A midpack raincrust is the only notable body in the snowpack structure near Gold Hill.

Pit profile and an ob from a crew I bumped into Saturday in the Murdock Bowl zone... thanks for the beta and the high fives!

We are always looking for snow and avalanche observations or just general riding conditions. Reach out to us with questions, concerns, or if you see anything in your travels! Contact us directly through the info below:

• Craig Gordon [email protected] 801-231-2170.
• Andrew Nassetta [email protected] 860-460-8142.

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. This forecast was issued on Monday, December `1st at 04:30 AM and expires 24 hours after it was issued.