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Utah Ice Conditions 2016/17

David Lane · · Unknown Hometown · Joined Sep 2014 · Points: 15

Hey guys, thanks for the update. I live here in the eastern Sierra, Lee Vining has been good this year. Lots of stuff has come in that is rare or has never been seen before. We just got dumped on (snow) the last few days, but are expecting 6-12" of RAIN from Saturday night through Monday, snow levels 9-10'000 feet.

Looks like you guys are expecting rain as well, what you guys think about the ice in relation to the latest forecast?

I was getting psyched for maple next weekend or so but now I don't have a clue what to think.

Brian in SLC · · Sandy, Utah · Joined Oct 2003 · Points: 21,711
David Lane wrote:Looks like you guys are expecting rain as well, what you guys think about the ice in relation to the latest forecast? I was getting psyched for maple next weekend or so but now I don't have a clue what to think.
Hmm. Tough call. Fatality on Frankenchrist in Maple was around a rain event.

That said, ice builds when there are nice temp swings especially given how much snow is around. Freeze thaw repeat repeat.

The Maple ice might survive as the temp's pop up for only a few days? Dunno.
David Nelson · · Salt Lake City, Utah · Joined Dec 2016 · Points: 100

The "Quarrycicle" has been climbed but as per note above, is on private property. No one I know that has done it have been busted. Probably a matter of luck. Climbers get on & off it quickly, some soloed it. Has been known to get fat in weird years.

David Nelson · · Salt Lake City, Utah · Joined Dec 2016 · Points: 100

Some of us going to Parley's (Shark's Fangs area, not SCM) this weekend to place bolts/pins at top of some of the shorter, easier sections in west section (climber's left) for those who want to TR the area (recommended) & get a feel for it all. Will post beta as necessary (if & where the new pro is). Parley's might be super miracle this year, depending, depending. Clearing weather may reveal some big stuff in SCM. At least scary. If it rains, forget it.

RacerXK1 · · Redlands, CA · Joined Aug 2011 · Points: 10

Went up into BCC today and took a couple laps on P1 of Storm Mountain Falls.

Storm Mountain Falls - Jan. 5, 2017

Michael Layton · · Sonora, CA · Joined Sep 2012 · Points: 5

heads up on directions for Santaquin from the new Utah Ice book. I hadn't been in years so I
unfortunately followed them.

Don't get off exit 148 as stated in the new book, instead drive 4-5 more miles! (did he copy the old ice guide directions, i recall those were off too?) Also, it is NOT 1.8 miles from the 1st gate to backoff gulley. wtf?

Allen Sanderson · · On the road to perdition · Joined Jul 2007 · Points: 1,203
MFL wrote:heads up on directions for Santaquin from the new Utah Ice book. I hadn't been in years so I unfortunately followed them. Don't get off exit 148 as stated in the new book, instead drive 4-5 more miles! (did he copy the old ice guide directions, i recall those were off too?) Also, it is NOT 1.8 miles from the 1st gate to backoff gulley. wtf?
It is exit 244 not 148 (or as the book lists 248) - though I never pay attention. And I would agree from the first (lower) gate to Backoff is about 1.8 miles. Usually takes about 30-45 minutes to walk depending on conditions. That said the wording is a bit confusing because the description using uses lower gate and first gate interchangeably.

That said how were the conditions???
David Nelson · · Salt Lake City, Utah · Joined Dec 2016 · Points: 100

PARLEY'S CANYON, SLC, UTAH, JANUARY 6-8, 2017

Was great while it lasted (10 days, off & on) but coming warm temps & rain will likely take Parley’s out for the season, unless very cold again & inversion returns.

Last seen 2012, this year showed up w/new formations, some very fat but oddly, only in Shark’s Fangs area; almost nothing in Super Scary Miracle - SCM- (the ‘big boy bowl’ to the east; very large pillars formed in 2012, are trying to form and are big & fat @ top but not dropping – damn).

Single digit temps, inc. below zero helped cement it all; ice grew fast daily in Shark’s Fangs.

New route “245 K” ; WI5 M8+

("K" as in Kelvin is super cold…..is “absolute” zero, so no ‘degrees’ used with term Kelvin. Pitch 1, 2 & 4 were done in 2012; pitch 3 was not in but was this year (2 days ago; blue ice, straight up, solid, pumpy, scary top out). Mid-part of first pitch is a bit odd to get onto cuz a little crappy just below the blue ice lower apron.

Wiki: “The Kelvin scale is an absolute, thermodynamic temperature scale using as its null point absolute zero, the temperature at which all thermal motion ceases in the classical description of thermodynamics”.

Perfect description of human body on this route cuz almost entire climb is out of the sun. “245K” = minus 18 degrees F (which it was morning of Jan 7) which means one feels the “null”, as in “dull”, as in freakin’ frozen to death while pretending to move.

Sparsely protected cuz we wanted out. A few bolts marked, will find a few slammed lrgr angles along 1st pitch, a couple along the ramp P1 – P2, and two stacked #3 angles in belay cave half way between P3 - P4.

In general in Parley’s, take a full range of angles (on safe side), 2 long Lost Arrows , TCU’s & rack to #4 ,1 Spectre, bolt kit (& something to hit the bolts with, ie., a hammer, not your Nomic’s). Lots of long slings, 2 ‘70mm’s. Not necessary for "245 K" but a sampling of the above necessary.

Leave the stubbie screws behind cuz you’ll wish you had a couple just when you need them & besides, they’re hairy. Range of screws, a few 22’s, depending on which area.

Hard to recommend pro cause climbed now only two seasons, this one being only two climbs, parts of which were done in 2012 but this year were more of a line with longer, harder sections in Shark’s Fangs.

SCM…not a damn thing, weird, too bad cuz can see the top of the big blue pillars trying to drop…..promises of much bigger stuff.

“Secret Baptism” (in Shark’s Fangs area) is so fat as to be unrecognizable in Beehive Ice guide. Steep 30’ section. WI4 8+

These new route names not in guide book cuz at the time, Parley's was first being reported and there were many short routes in Shark's Fangs, too many & too small to name. This year is different, and will be next time it comes in, if ever.

Shark's Fangs, January 7, 2017
Shark's Fangs January 6, 2017, much fatter than when first seen & climbed in 2012. At the time this area was comprised of smaller drips but this year, the smaller merged to become longer, taller, steeper, more difficult, more connected, so two routes were done & named. "245 K" and "Secret Baptism".
Super Scary Miracle, the "biggie" next to & higher in elevation than Shark's Fangs. Also much more difficult in terms of technically, route finding, safely moving around the huge bowl and moving from one formation to the next. Great care must be taken; not for newbies, sorry. This area in 2012 had huge pillars that touched the ground (see the guide book) and it looked like it would do this again but it is supposed to start raining today or the coming days. If that happens, this area will be gone until next seasons, if the ice returns at all.

Michael Layton · · Sonora, CA · Joined Sep 2012 · Points: 5
Allen Sanderson wrote: It is exit 244 not 148 (or as the book lists 248) - though I never pay attention. And I would agree from the first (lower) gate to Backoff is about 1.8 miles. Usually takes about 30-45 minutes to walk depending on conditions. That said the wording is a bit confusing because the description using uses lower gate the first gate interchangeably. That said how were the conditions???
My bad on misunderstanding the gate distance ....I didn't make it to the ice due to my poor reading comprehension and late start
El Gordo · · Taylorsville, UT · Joined Sep 2013 · Points: 5

Found a jacket at the base of Scruffy today (1/8/17). PM if you think it's yours.

a.l. · · Unknown Hometown · Joined Jan 2008 · Points: 5
David Nelson wrote:PARLEY'S CANYON, SLC, UTAH, JANUARY 6-8, 2017 Was great while it lasted (10 days, off & on)...
Nice job, thanks for posting.
And today-it's 48 F here at my house in the City of Salt, it rained to 8500 and the bc snow conditions are upside down, but it really was great while it lasted..sigh.
David Nelson · · Salt Lake City, Utah · Joined Dec 2016 · Points: 100
a.l. wrote: Nice job, thanks for posting. And today-it's 48 F here at my house in the City of Salt, it rained to 8500 and the bc snow conditions are upside down, but it really was great while it lasted..sigh.
A.I.; afraid you are right, I think Parley's is toast for the season but keep an eye on it....super water soaked, might miraculously come back but then need to jump on it. Check from Grandeur Peak parking lot now & then, esp. if inversion shows up. (For best view, walk north 75 yards to fence, east 100+ yards & past end of fence for another 50 yards. From there, you can see directly into bowl, otherwise, somewhat misleading if only looked at from parking lot. SCM ice sometimes not seen from parking lot itself, but can see Shark's Fangs, directly north from parking lot).

This is what SCM looked like in 2012; walk east (uphill) from Grandeur parking lot, following metal chain link fence. When in the bowl, you are playground surrounded. More beta in Beehive Ice guide.

The two long, thin pillars touched down, solid & bonded, one or two days after this pic & climbed same long, hard days as the other routes. When the nightly inversion started receding down the canyon, climbs melted out after 10 days or so; inversion is key to it all, perversely. And super cold temps.

SCM in late Jan, 2012. Large thin pillars touched down next day or two & were climbed with other routes; check Beehive Ice guide. Ice grows (& goes) very fast in Parley's.
morgoth70 · · Bountiful, UT · Joined Jan 2011 · Points: 25

Has anyone seen hidden haven lately? Any idea what kind of shape it's in with with all the lovely rain?

Andrew Bakios · · Unknown Hometown · Joined Sep 2015 · Points: 0

Has anyone been to last chance falls up in Logan Canyon this season? I know the canyon is closed currently due to the avalanche by Beaver.

Miles Brooks · · Unknown Hometown · Joined Jan 2017 · Points: 5

I was up there last Saturday and it was fine. However Logan did get hit the week before with enough snow to make the trek up to the ice the crux of the whole thing. But given their rise in temperatures and recent rain im wiling to bet that conditions have slightly changed.

Near the top of last chance falls Jan 7th 2017

R. Moran · · Moab , UT · Joined Mar 2009 · Points: 140

How's Maple looking? Hoping to head up this weekend. Wondering if it will be spared from all this warm wet weather?

Mark Regier · · Salt Lake City, UT · Joined Mar 2006 · Points: 40
kevinhansen wrote:Looking for BD turbo express screws with bent or dull teeth. $10 each. (Too oh ate) three won too - 8062
I sent Kevin two screws and he put money in my paypal account before I left the post office. Talked to him on the phone and he's a real guy just trying to build a rack (like a dirtbag). If you've got some old screws, hook him up! (Nobody else is going to pay you for them....)!
Billyjack Cundiff · · Salt Lake City · Joined May 2014 · Points: 55
R. Moran wrote:How's Maple looking? Hoping to head up this weekend. Wondering if it will be spared from all this warm wet weather?
Im interested to know how Maple is if you get down there.
David Nelson · · Salt Lake City, Utah · Joined Dec 2016 · Points: 100

Parley’s Canyon is gone as of Thurs, Jan 10, 2017, but the upper catchment areas are soaked as are the formations. In the unlikely chance that we get a super cold period of 4-5 days, major parts will come back, esp. Shark’s Fangs (new route: this photo; see photo above in this string for pic when Shark's Fangs was in the week before. Tall column was grounded, solid but vertical. Screws only mixed below & above column; all other climbs in Parleys usually mixed). For about a fat week, it was great. Not recommended to wander around in the area unless skirting the areas for beta. Not safe to get on the rock w/o the cementing of ice.

Shark's Fangs, Parley's Canyon, Jan 11, 2017. Catchment areas water soaked, as are the formations but would need a week of super cold weather to bring them back. But not impossible. New pro (bolts, pins) placed in Shark's Fangs bomb proof but tall column in middle (see photos above) was sweaty palms times. Screws only. Shark's Fans located west of SCM & smaller but can be challenging area. 15-20 minute approach.

Super Scary Miracle, adjacent to Shark's Fangs, Jan 11, 2017. Nothing came in this winter, odd since water catchment areas above much bigger than those above Shark's Fangs. No big columns came close to touching down, in fact, barely started. If one week of cold weather, along with inversion, this area could come back in but need to get on & off quickly.

ERiK Ostrander · · Salt Lake City, UT · Joined Jun 2007 · Points: 36

Also headed to Maple this weekend. Gonna do a turn and burn Sunday.

Guideline #1: Don't be a jerk.

Northern Utah & Idaho
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