Moab

Most terrain has generally LOW danger. Small avalanches on isolated terrain features are possible. Even a small avalanche can have serious consequences in extreme terrain.

As the day heats up we may see some small loose wet avalanches on sun exposed slopes. Signs of instability include rollerballs, pinwheels, and sloppy wet snow. Stay off of and out from under steep slopes when these signs are present. Our long standing persistent weak layer problem is generally non-reactive and people are skiing all kinds of terrain without incident. Weak faceted snow still remains on upper elevation, northerly aspects however, and cautious mountain travelers will continue to avoid likely trigger points such as shallow rocky starting zones, thin steep convexities, and areas of very radical, extreme terrain.

No new avalanches have been reported since last Thursday night's round of natural wind slab activity.

See the complete avalanche database here.

Construction is back on today and the Loop Road will be closed from Pack Creek between 8:30-5:30.

Geyser Pass Road: The road is melted out to the dirt down low but becomes increasingly wet and sloppy up high. 4x4 required.

Grooming Conditions: Trails are packed into Gold Basin.

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6 A.M. Snow and Weather Data

24 Hour Snow: 0" 72 Hour Snow: 0" Season Total Snow: 138" Depth at Gold Basin: 48"

Winds on Pre-Laurel Peak: W 10-20 Temp: 28° F

Weather

Under mostly clear skies mountain temperatures are in the upper 20's to low 30's. Westerly winds are light to moderate. Temperatures will soar into the low 50's today and we should see an uptick in westerly winds this afternoon. The warming trend continues through the week with near record temperatures by Friday. Things start to cool down on Sunday

General Conditions

Mixed bag spring conditions are in effect but with another refreeze last night you should be able to find some supportable, corn-like snow out there this morning on solar aspects. Dry snow is becoming an increasingly rare commodity except for on the highest north faces. Jake Etter was up yesterday and he observed damp snow conditions on northerly aspects at mid elevations. People have been skiing all kinds of terrain without incident and conditions are generally stable. As the day heats up however, you will again need to be alert to the potential for loose wet avalanches on sun exposed slopes.

You can find some south facing slopes with enough snow for decent corn skiing, but some are very thin. Jake Etter photo.

Chris Benson shot this great footage from the air on Sunday. It's a great perspective on overall conditions.

Snowpack and Weather Data

Snowpack Observations

Gold Basin Storm Stake (10,000')

Gold Basin SNOTEL site (10,000')

SNOTEL site near Geyser Pass Winter Trailhead (9600')

Wind Station on Pre-Laurel Peak (11,400')

NWS forecast for the La Sal Mountains.

Check out the latest UAC podcast with forecaster Brett "Kowboy" Kobernick where he discusses faceted persistent weak layers and how "nobody is immune from getting killed in an avalanche."

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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.