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Forecast for the Ogden Area Mountains

Drew Hardesty
Issued by Drew Hardesty on
Tuesday morning, December 6, 2022
A tricky CONSIDERABLE avalanche danger exists on steep west to north to southeast facing slopes at the mid and upper elevations. Dangerous human triggered avalanches 1-4' deep and up to 300' wide are likely...and may be triggered at a distance. A MODERATE avalanche danger exists on all south and southwest facing slopes and in the low elevation bands.
Travel Advice: Choose low angle terrain with nothing steep above.
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Special Announcements
Join the Utah Avalanche Center and the Utah Division of Outdoor Recreation to celebrate the Fourth Annual Avalanche Awareness week from December 4 - December 11. Click HERE to view the full list of events for the week.
Weather and Snow
Skies are partly cloudy with light westerly winds. Temperatures are in the upper teens and low 20s. New snowfall Sunday night added up to 2-4". There is roughly 30-40" of snow in the mid and upper elevations.
For today, we'll have clearing skies, light westerly winds and temperatures rising to the mid to upper 20s. The next storm arrives this weekend.
Mark Staples put together a comprehensive Weather and Snow Summary HERE.
Recent Avalanches
There was an observation Sunday of a skier triggered soft slab avalanche on an east aspect at 7800' on Cutler Ridge. This avalanche was 3' DEEP and approximately 100' WIDE. It ran to within 2' of the uphill skin track. This avalanche was triggered from below and ran on a persistent weak layer. No avalanches were reported yesterday.
Photo: Tiedes
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Avalanche Problem #1
Persistent Weak Layer
Type
Location
Likelihood
Size
Description
The mid-November drought created a very weak snow surface composed of facets and patches of surface hoar on all aspects and elevations throughout the Wasatch Range. North and East facing aspects harbored some of the weaker faceted snow and have also seen the most wind loading (primarily last Wednesday and Thursday). Cracking and collapsing continue to be noted in backcountry travel and many experienced skiers have commented that conditions are tricky and stressful.
Greg's observation from a northeast aspect in the Powder Mountain Backcountry explains the current avalanche problem.
November's low sun angle and colder than normal temperatures led to a poor snowpack structure on south and west facing aspects on some slopes. This is fairly unusual. Although these "off aspects" have a more complicated snow structure and have experienced less loading (in fact some scouring away of snow), I am not ready to trust these aspects just yet.
TREND: STEADY
Additional Information
MOST ACCIDENTS AND FATALITIES OCCUR DURING A CONSIDERABLE AVALANCHE DANGER THAT INVOLVES A PERSISTENT WEAK LAYER.
A word to the wise: Don't get fooled.
As avalanches become more stubborn and cracking and cracking become less commonplace, there can be a tendency to believe that conditions are improving faster than they are.
The GOOD NEWS is that riding conditions are 5 STAR on all aspects and on low angle slopes. Choose low angle terrain with nothing steep above you.
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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