We have had some Spring like weather in the valleys which means the temperatures are also warm in the higher terrain.  Castle Country Radio was able to speak over the telephone with the Utah Avalanche Center’s Brett Kobernik about the latest conditions taking place out in the backcountry.

Our area and the mountains have not had a storm pass through since last weekend. The temperatures have been warm in the valleys which in turn has affected the higher terrain as Kobernik explains, “You get out there and everything is frozen up, by mid-day you start to see things softening, by late in the day it could be getting wet and mushy. So it’s just kind of a timing thing, again it doesn’t really pose that great of a threat to people on the Skyline as far as avalanche danger is concerned.” Officials state they have never seen any accidents or close calls when it comes to the wet snow conditions.

Although we have had some great Spring like weather there is still some smaller storms that are in the forecast. “Models indicate a series of smaller storms through the end of the month, and maybe into the first part of April, that obviously changes things. That’s one thing that’s a little tricky about Spring time conditions do change fast. We can go from this Spring time regime of conditions and then all of sudden it’s winter again,” stated Kobernik. Conditions can change very rapidly in the Spring time with rain/snow mixes and the wind, it’s mainly all about the timing of the storms as they pass through.

Knowing the conditions before heading out is very important and right now the danger rating on the Skyline is low. “As we always say, the best thing is to check that daily avalanche forecast. That’s updated at about 7:00 am each morning, https://utahavalanchecenter.org/ You check that, and then you get the most up to date conditions, you know what to expect, what to look out for, when you’re headed out there to the mountains,” said Kobernik.