Forecast: Ogden Area Mountains - Utah Avalanche Center

Forecast for the Ogden Area Mountains

Issued by Drew Hardesty on
Friday morning, January 30, 2026

The overall avalanche danger remains LOW. Normal Caution is advised.

Today you'll be able to trigger both shallow wet and dry loose snow sluffs on the southerly and northerly aspects, respectively. Any dry loose sluff may gouge into older faceted snow, leaving larger debris piles. Along the highest elevations, you may encounter scattershot shallow and soft wind slabs in lee terrain. Note that the danger is a touch higher in the Logan area mountains.

Low

Moderate

Considerable

High

Extreme

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Special Announcements

New essay by UAC Director Paige Pagnucco - Weak Snow: Today’s Surface, Tomorrow’s Avalanche Problem

Weather and Snow

Skies are clear under a building full moon, christened the Snow Moon. We'll have 13 full moons in 2026.

Mountain temperatures are in the upper teens to mid-20s; winds from the northwest are 10-15mph with gusts to 20. Along the Ogden skyline, winds are 20mph with gusts to 55. For today, we'll have mostly sunny skies, light to moderate winds from the northwest and temperatures warming into the upper-20s up high, the upper-30s down low. The weather outlook remains fairly grim, with not one but two blocking patterns setting up to swat away any potential storms. Not all is lost, however; I am seeing some hints of a pattern shift in the second week of February, though possibly more toward Valentine's Day. In geologic terms, it's just a blink of an eye.

Riding conditions are much improved with Wednesday night's couple-few inches of snow. It's a good time to explore: Kauffman rode around the mountains east of Eden yesterday and his excellent report is HERE.

Recent Avalanches

Ski areas noted very shallow, pockety wind slabs up high and some longer running loose dry sluffs in steep terrain.

Type

Location

Likelihood

Size

Description

While the danger is generally LOW, there are a few minor avalanche issues to consider, particularly in the higher elevation bands today:

❄️ Loose dry sluffs may gouge deeply into the old weak surface snow, leaving deeper debris piles, particularly in gullies or other confined terrain. These "facet" sluffs are slow, but dense, and may trip you up and drag you downslope.

❄️ Wednesday night's 1-2 inches of new snow will likely dampen with today's sun and rising temperatures. You may be able to trigger shallow, but longer running wet loose sluffs on the slick crusts on the solar aspects. They too will be slow moving, but dense enough to trip you up and ragdoll you on an unpleasant ride.

❄️ Along the highest elevations, and particularly on northeast to southeast facing slopes, you may encounter surprisingly sensitive pockets of wind drifted snow. These will be soft, not hard, and generally show their cards with shooting cracks or minor collapsing. Ski cuts may be an effective tool for mitigation.

General Announcements

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.

Observations and Avalanches

Backcountry Emergency Procedures