A few inches of low-density snow on Wednesday evening brought a fresh look to the Logan mountains. Riding conditions improved slightly, but it's the frosted pines and thin coat of new snow covering old tracks that really make the peaks glisten. At lower elevations, solar slopes facing southeast through west are mostly bare, and snow coverage remains exceptionally thin at lower and mid-elevations. Watch for rocks, downed trees, and barely covered branches in these areas. At upper elevations, snow surfaces are highly variable. Sunny slopes hold dust-on-crust conditions, while cold, north-facing slopes contain extremely weak, sugary snow beneath yesterday's dusting.
This morning at the UAC Card Canyon weather station at 8700 feet, it's 18°F, and there is 43 inches of total snow. The Tony Grove Snotel at 8400 feet reports 22°F and 56 inches of total snow. On Logan Peak at 9700 feet, winds are blowing 19 mph from the northwest, gusting to 25 mph. It's 17°F on Paris Peak at 9500 feet, and the wind is blowing 15 mph from the west, gusting to 20 mph. Moderate west-northwest winds last night and today may continue to create pockets of wind-drifted snow resting on top of weak, sugary facets.
Fog will persist in the Cache Valley today, but it can be escaped by a quick drive up Logan Canyon. Mostly clear skies this morning will give way to partly cloudy conditions this afternoon. Winds will increase slightly throughout the day, blowing 20 mph from the northwest and gusting to 30 mph. Temperatures are expected to climb to 25°F today and will continue to increase through the weekend. Looking ahead, we expect dry conditions to persist through next weekend.
Textured snow surfaces indicate wind-drifted snow. Watch for slopes where the snow appears to be rounded, smooth, and pillowy.
Yesterday, we hosted a Backcountry 101 in Steep Hollow. Thank you to everyone who joined us on the snow!
No avalanches have been reported recently. For all observations and avalanche activity in the Logan Zone, go HERE.
