Nowcast- Apologies for Monday's blown weather forecast. I got the deets tangled in my brain for both strength and timing of yesterday's storm as it was weaker than advertised and arrived early this morning. But hey... better Nate than lever... it snowed! At o'dark thirty, clouds are beginning to head east in the wake of our underwhelming storm which delivered just two inches of snow. Temperatures are in the low to mid teens and westerly winds blow in the 30's near the high peaks. It's spring and that means riding and turning conditions are aspect and elevation dependent. Low elevation solars offer dust on crust, whilst mid and upper elevation, wind sheltered polars, offer cold creamy snow.    Forecast- Look for clearing skies and a short-lived break in the action this morning. Westerly winds diminish this morning only to ramp back up, blowing in the 40's later in the day. High temperatures climb into the mid 20's with overnight low dipping into the teens.   Futurecast- A storm churning to our south slowly works it's way into the Uinta's late in the day and that brings a prolonged period of storminess lasting through Thursday. I think 6"-10" of snow overnight seems like a good bet, with similar amounts stacking up Wednesday.       We've got a busy week on tap and it starts off with a Winter Storm Warning for today.    Detailed trip reports and recent obs are found HERE.                

A violent cold front ripped though the mountains yesterday, complete with ear-shattering thunder, lightning, graupel and roiling west to northwest winds. Happy first day of spring indeed. All told, storm totals added up to 12-15" of new snow with 1.30-1.50" of snow water equivalent. With frontal passage, winds averaged 35mph from the west with some gusts to 50mph for a few hours.      Currently, skies are overcast with temperatures in the teens and low 20s.  Winds are light to moderate from the west.  Along the highest ridgelines, they're averaging 25mph with gusts to 35.   We have just a moment to catch our breath before the next series of storms.  A powerful storm system pushes down the door this afternoon through early Thursday that'll bring significant snowfall along with moderate to strong winds from the southwest.  A rough forecast for snow totals is 15-25".  A quick hitting cold front (with additional snowfall) arrives Friday with temperatures plummeting to near 0°F.  Unsettled through the weekend with a break for a few days early next week. Whew!    

The 8400' Tony Grove Snotel reports 6 inches of new snow in the last 24 hours. It's 19° F this morning, and there is 131 inches of total snow.  The wind is blowing from the west-southwest around 20 mph this morning at the 9700' CSI Logan Peak weather station.   Here is the NWS point forecast (36 hrs) for high elevations in the Central Bear River Range: Today: Partly sunny, with a high near 29. Wind chill values as low as zero. West southwest wind 9 to 15 mph becoming southeast in the afternoon. Tonight: Snow showers. The snow could be heavy at times. Patchy blowing snow after midnight. Low around 19. Wind chill values as low as 5. East southeast wind around 18 mph becoming south southwest after midnight. Chance of precipitation is 90%. New snow accumulation of 4 to 8 inches possible. Wednesday: Snow showers. The snow could be heavy at times. Patchy blowing snow. High near 28. Wind chill values as low as 7. Breezy, with a south southwest wind 14 to 23 mph. Chance of precipitation is 100%. New snow accumulation of 8 to 12 inches possible. The National Weather service has issued a Winter Weather Advisory  for the Logan Zone, and I expect more dangerous avalanche conditions to develop overnight and tomorrow.  Snow showers and periods of heavier snowfall will continue through the week...

The first storm of the week did its job yesterday with storm totals of 10-14" and up to 1.41" of snow water equivalent.  Currently, skies are mostly cloudy with temperatures in the teens and low 20s.  Winds are light to moderate from the west.  Along the highest ridgelines, they're averaging 20-25mph with gusts to 45.  We'll have briefly clearing skies with clouds streaming in from the southwest.   We have just a moment to catch our breath before the next series of storms.  A powerful storm system pushes down the door this afternoon through early Thursday that'll bring significant snowfall along with moderate to strong winds from the southwest.  A rough forecast for snow totals is 15-25".  This is yet another atmospheric river event that will initially favor Provo, although temperatures will be cooler than the previous two events.  A quick hitting cold front (with additional snowfall) arrives Friday with temperatures plummeting to near 0°F.  Unsettled through the weekend with a break for a few days early next week. Whew!    

Current Conditions:  Nice storm!!  It produced a bit better than I was anticipating.  There's an average of 10 inches of new snow since Sunday.  The Fairview region and Ferron Canyon area both picked up 12".  The wind wasn't outrageously strong during the storm but certainly drifted some snow along the higher terrain.  We still have moderate speed wind from the southwest.  Temperatures have been around 20˚F since around noon yesterday.  For more details on the snow conditions, check out this BACKCOUNTRY SNOW OBSERVATION from Chris Magerl. Mountain Weather:  We have a quick break this morning then snow will return this afternoon.  Anticipate increasing clouds this morning.  Temperatures will get into the mid 20s.  Wind will be light to moderate in speed from the south or even southeast.  We'll have periods of snow this afternoon through Wednesday which should produce another 6 to 12 inches.  There's more snow anticipated Thursday and another round Friday.

6:00 a.m. Snow and Weather Data   24 Hour Snow 11" 72 Hour Snow 14" Season Total Snow 271" Base Depth at Gold Basin 99" Winds on Pre-Laurel Peak: N/A Temp 15˚ F Weather   Things are quiet this morning for a short window before the next wave of the atmospheric river moves through the La Sals. Snow will begin around noon and will be heavy at times. Southerly winds will start out around 10-15 mph and increase to 20-25. We could see gusts up to 40 mph today. The heaviest period of snow will occur overnight into Wednesday. Snowfall rates overnight could be 2 inches an hour. During the peak of the storm, winds will blow 30-40 mph out of the SW, with gusts up to 70 mph. By noon tomorrow, we could stack up another 12-18" of snow. The pattern remains active with chances for more snow through the weekend.    General Conditions   The calendar says it's time for sunglasses and skiing big lines, but mother nature says otherwise. It is full-on winter in the La Sal Range. The first wave of this AR event dropped 14" of snow at 2.1" of SWE. This made for excellent surfy pow conditions, but all of this snow comes with increasing avalanche danger. Dangerous avalanche conditions exist, and human triggered avalanches are likely, involving both new and wind drifted snow.  The danger will be on the rise when the next wave of snow moves in around noon. The heaviest snowfall is forecast to occur overnight, but if heavy PI rates occur during the day, expect a corresponding rise in danger. If you have been getting into big terrain lately, it is certainly time to dial it back and keep things conservative.       Snowpack and Weather Data   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.