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Forecast for the Ogden Area Mountains

Trent Meisenheimer
Issued by Trent Meisenheimer on
Monday morning, March 15, 2021
The avalanche danger is LOW. Watch for unstable snow on isolated terrain features. Remember that risk is inherent in mountain travel.
Watch for fresh slabs of wind drifted snow. These wind slabs will be generally shallow and isolated to terrain features that allow for drifting snow to accumulate. In sun and wind-sheltered zones, the new snow could lead to shallow soft slab avalanches or minor sluffing on the steepest slopes today.

If the strong March sun does end up coming out today - the avalanche danger could quickly rise to MODERATE on all steep southerly aspects. Pay attention to changing conditions - rollerballs are the first sign that the snow is becoming unstable.
Low
Moderate
Considerable
High
Extreme
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Special Announcements
Four riders were boot packing up the east ridge of the Pfeifferhorn when a shallow 2-6 inch deep wind slab failed. All four people were caught and carried, and some suffered injuries. Link to a preliminary report can be found HERE. UAC staff will visit the site this morning and update the accident report in the next few days.
Weather and Snow
A trough off the coast of Northern California will continue to dig southward and become a closed low that tracks to the south of Utah and eventually crosses over Arizona tomorrow. Unfortunately, the moisture from this storm will be apart of a wrap-around feature that typically doesn't favor the Wasatch Range. We are likely to see a trace to a couple of inches of new snow later tonight into Tuesday. As this closed low moves eastward into New Mexico, a ridge builds into Northern Utah midweek leading to mild temps and passing clouds. A splitting storm sets up for the weekend, and as of now, the models show some decent snow Saturday through Monday. Stay tuned
Currently, under partly cloudy skies, the mountain temperatures range 25-32°F at the mid and upper elevations. Winds have finally relaxed and backed to the westerly direction and are currently blowing 10-15 mph with gusts into the low 20's at the upper elevations. It should remain partly cloudy this morning, with the possibility of some sun streaming through the clouds this afternoon before the clouds begin to thicken up once again later today. Temperatures will rise into the mid 30's °F this afternoon at 9,000'.
Recent Avalanches
No new avalanches reported in the Ogden backcountry yesterday.

Yesterday was a very active day in the Wasatch Range, with 13 new avalanches reported to the UAC. Seven people were caught and carried in avalanches, and in one incident, people were injured. All of these avalanches were wind slabs caused by the strong winds over the past 36 hrs. Most of these wind slabs were 5-18 inches deep and up to 50 feet wide, except for the Pfeifferhorn avalanche being wider. These avalanches were found on all different aspects at the mid and upper elevations throughout the range.
Take a few minutes and scan through the avalanche list found HERE.
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Avalanche Problem #1
Normal Caution
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Description
Today, the overall avalanche danger is LOW. This means that human-triggered avalanches are unlikely, but small avalanches in isolated areas are possible.
Today I would watch for:
Wind Drifted Snow: At upper elevation ridgelines, the new snow could be drifted into shallow wind drifts. These wind slabs will be shallow and overall small in size, but these new wind drifts are sitting atop of a firm snow surface which will make them very sensitive and cause them to run far and fast. Remember that even a small avalanche can be problematic in very steep and complicated terrain. Think about the terrain you are traveling above today.
Wet snow: Late this morning the weather should begin to break, and high pressure will build. This could lead to some broken skies, occasional sunshine, and warm temperatures. With so much cold new snow, and how strong the sun is this time of year, as soon as the sun comes out the snow surface will become instantly wet. As the day heats up, wet avalanches of loose snow will become possible. Pay attention to the snow surface becoming wet, then look for small point releases, balls of snow rolling downhill and growing in size and occurring more frequently.
New Snow: In area's protected from the wind and the sun, the new snow could still lead to shallow soft slab avalanches or minor sluffing on the steepest slopes today.

Slide-for-life: The new snow could easily be scoured off steep slopes and expose the firm icy slopes below. Hard icy conditions aren't an avalanche concern, but a hazard nonetheless in steep terrain where you wouldn't be able to stop if you fell.
General Announcements
Please visit this website with information about Responsible Winter Recreation by the Utah Office of Outdoor Recreation.

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.