The Wasatch slopes have claimed their first Utah avalanche victim of 2014/15.  A snowboarder was swept away yesterday after he and his buddy triggered a slide in Hells Canyon near Snowbasin Resort, accessed from the Mt Allen Tram gates.

Twenty-one-year old Blake Ford was found by Snowbasin’s ski patrol rescue dog an hour after the 1800-foot avalanche. He was apparently pushed through a narrow gully and buried under three feet of snow. Both men headed out of bounds without backcountry gear or beacons, into an area that has been known to claim lives. Not a smart move. Ever.

Utah mountains saw seven human-triggered slides yesterday alone as eager backcountry skiers skinned out on this bluebird powder day. However, the two feet of fresh powder on top of our thin snowpack has created some scary, slab avalanche conditions.

The beehive state averages about four avi-related fatalities a year and experts are begging folks to stay on lower-angle terrain for the next few days when they go out of bounds to avoid reaching that average.

Weather forecasters are predicting balmy temps in the 50s this weekend and next week with no winter weather in sight. Of course, that can change in an instant. Just take the time to check in with the Utah Avalanche Forecast Center hotline before choosing your route.

Park City is going to look like a gigantic construction zone if everybody gets their way this summer. First, there’s Deer Valley Resort’s plan to link Main Street to Silver Lake Village either with one gondola or two gondolas (one that would replace Silver Lake Express chairlift, and another that would scoot from Park City’s Old Town Transit Center to the top of Lucky Bill ski run). The gondola’s meant for those staying in DV’s mid-mountain homes and lodges. It would make it easier to dine and play on Main Street during their stay. The proposed transit would take 15 minutes and run 7 a.m. to 11 p.m.

Second, there’re Vail Resort’s multi-million dollar improvement plans for Park City Mountain Resort and Canyons Resort. Summit County has already OK’d the interconnect gondola that would link the two areas into one mega-resort. All VR needs is the green light from Park City municipal and they can go ahead with the eight-passenger bucket. There really isn’t anything legally that could get in the way. At issue now is how it’s going to look.

The gondola cars would be mostly silver-grey with a red stripe to match PCMR’s branding colors and the windows would be made of non-reflective grey glass. VR’s Blaise Carrig promises you would have a hard time seeing it from in town. The 18 lift towers will also be coated with non-reflective neutral paint. The gondola presentation is on the City Planning Commission meeting schedule for February 25 if you want to eaves drop.

You can expect closures of some of PCMR’s and DV’s signature biking and hiking trails this summer when the digging starts. Look to both resorts and Mountain trails Foundation to notify folks about reroutes and closures.