Avalanche forecast

Uintas

Utah Avalanche Center
View on map

Avalanche danger

  • Alpine
  • Treeline
  • Below treeline
Open full map
Out of date — this forecast expired 9 months ago. You’re viewing past conditions, not the current bulletin.

Highlights

Heads up... a rather moist, multi-day storm is poised to slide into the region and that'll change the landscape and increase the avy hazard, especially as the storm gets down to business later today.

Expect MODERATE avalanche danger at and above treeline on slopes facing northwest through east. Human triggered avalanches are POSSIBLE, particularly on steep, drifted slopes in the windzone facing the north half of the compass. Remember- triggering even a small avalanche this time of year can result in a season ending injury.

Wind sheltered terrain offers generally LOW avalanche danger, but it's low tide and there's plenty of buzz-killing obstacles barely hidden underneath the shallow snow surface.

Avalanche problems

  • Wind Slabs

    • Alpine
    • Treeline
    • Below treeline
    Likelihood
    Possible
    Size
    1

    A small wind-drifted pocket that Andy observed release naturally during a spike in winds on Monday near Bald Mountain on a north facing slope around 10,700'.

    At and above treeline on slopes facing the north half of the compass, you'll find a consistently, inconsistent mixed bag of stiff and stubborn wind-drifts, breaking up to about a foot deep. Although the snowpack is thin, where there is enough snow to ride look for and avoid fat, rounded pillows on the leeward side of ridges or around terrain features like chutes and gully walls where both new and older drifts will react to our additional weight.

    Check out the structure below, showcasing the wind slab hazard. Pull out the shovel, or even throw in a quick handpit as it's easy digging to see the strong, dense snow formed by wind sitting atop the weak, early-season sugary snow... this is the set-up we want to avoid right now.

Special Announcement

Avalanche Awareness Week- 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!

Recent Activity

No avalanches have been reported across the range in the past 48 hours. But for now, click below to check out all reported avalanches and travel obs from across the range and beyond!

View All Observations Here

Snow and Weather

Nowcast- While we wait for the main act, the warm up band is just walking into the arena, teasing us with a few notes of their greatest hits and delivering a couple traces of fresh snow overnight. Under mostly cloudy skies, light snow is falling and temperatures register in the teens and low 20's as westerly winds blow 20-30 mph near the high peaks.

Forecast- A better shot of moisture slides into northern Utah later this morning, stacking up 2"-4" of snow by about midday. Blowing in the 30's and 40's, west and northwest winds are gonna be a nuisance near the high ridges. It'll be a warm day for early December with temperatures rising into the upper 20's and overnight lows dipping into the low 20's.

Futurecast - An atmospheric river pumps the heaviest snow into the region tonight into Saturday morning. Storminess tapers off late Saturday with snow showers lingering into Sunday morning. This is our first significant winter storm of the season potentially bringing 18"-24" of snow with nearly 2" SWE (snow-water equivalent). Stay tuned, and we'll keep you in the loop as things materialize!

Our long time partners, Salt Lake's National Weather Service, have issued a winter storm warning for the Uinta zone. Nice to see some wintery, warning colors on their homepage!

Yesterday, Andy snagged some aerial images of the Wolf Creek zone helping to paint an accurate picture of old snow distribution and the lay of land.

Visit Here For Additional Weather Information

Additional Info

Looking into the Living Room from the shoulder of Reids Peak and Bald Mountain at 10,700'.

Snow cover across the range is pretty straight-forward... below 9,000' feet it's bare ground. Gain some elevation and you'll find between 1'-3' of snow, with depths leaner on the South Slope, growing deeper as you head north towards Evanston. The pack mostly consists of faceted snow in protected areas, and a mixed bag of windboard, crusts, and facets in the windzone.

The pack is so thin, and my greatest concern is bringing my season to a quick end by smashing a rock or getting hung up on a log. For now, I'm hunting shady Uinta grass slopes and any low-angle jam I can manage to squeeze a few turns out of until things grow a bit deeper.

General Announcements

But wait... there's more!

See All Courses & Events Here

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:

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 Friday, December `5th at 04:00 AM and expires 24 hours after it was issued. We'll update this information by 07:00 tomorrow.

Regions covered