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Forecast for the Moab Area Mountains

Eric Trenbeath
Issued by Eric Trenbeath on
Monday morning, November 18, 2024
Welcome to the 2024/25 season! We will update this forecast on Mondays and Fridays until more snow arrives.
Snow cover remains quite thin and there isn't much of an avalanche hazard out there right now. As always, if you are getting into the high country, suspect smooth, rounded pillows of wind drifted snow that may sound or feel hollow underneath. Any ride in an avalanche, even a small one, would be extremely rough right now.
Rocks, trees, and stumps pose serious hazards and recreating off of snow covered roads is not recommended.
Low
Moderate
Considerable
High
Extreme
Learn how to read the forecast here
Special Announcements
We have several events coming up to kick off the winter season:
Thursday, December 5 - FREE Know Before You Go avalanche awareness talk 6 PM at the Grand County Public Library
Saturday, December 7 - 17th Annual Utah Snow and Avalanche Workshop (USAW) - Information and tickets available here.
Saturday, December 14 - 3rd Annual UAC Moab/LUNA Winter Kickoff Party, 6 PM at the MARC. Information and tickets available here.
Weather and Snow
The early season snowpack is dwindling and there is now less than a foot of snow at the Gold Basin study plot (10,000'). Maximum depths at upper elevations are 18"-24". On shady slopes, the snowpack is growing weaker by the day. In his travels last week, Dave Garcia observed faceted layers in the lower half of the snowpack along with a cohesive slab on top in some areas. This structure will become problematic when new snow finally arrives. South facing slopes are a mix of bare ground and crusted surfaces.
The near outlook for snow looks bleak. We'll see a slight chance for light showers on Monday night with dry conditions through the remainder of the week. Models hint at some weather about a week out.
The indefatigable Chris Benson was up around La Sal Pass over the weekend. See his observation here, and check out his excellent video below:
Snowpack and Weather Data
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.
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Additional Information
It’s never too early to start thinking about avalanches. Here are a few things to consider doing:
  • We have over 5 hours of free online learning at the Know Before You Go Website
  • Sign up for an on-snow class or in in person Know Before you Go Event.
  • Get your avalanche rescue gear ready for winter. Put fresh batteries in your transceiver and update the firmware. Inspect your shovel and probe. Get your airbag backpack ready by possibly doing a test deployment and updating the firmware if it is an electric version or getting your canister refilled if it's not electronic
General Announcements
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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