UDOT prepares avalanche systems ahead of a potentially big winter

ALTA —  The Utah Department of Transportation closed part of the backcountry near Snowbird in Little Cottonwood Canyon Monday.

The department said the closure affected the South ridge of Mount Superior, the Superior ridgeline to Cardiff Peak and Pass, and into East Hellgate from midnight-5 p.m.

UDOT said its avalanche team is servicing its remote avalanche control systems. Spokesperson John Gleason said they're doing maintenance on the stationary towers placed in hard-to-reach areas that are more prone to slides.

"We'll drop the charge when needed, and it brings all the all the snow down the side of the mountain," Gleason said. "We'll go up there several times a year, especially if we have a big winter and we need to restock the charges up there."

Gleason said around 20 of the towers have been installed. They replace the howitzer gun, which sends live artillery over some homes and buildings.

Gleason said they're making sure the towers are clean and ready to operate, especially ahead of the predicted Super El Niño.

"Our meteorologists say what everybody else is saying, that there's a good chance that we're going to have a very healthy winter," he said. "Maybe wet weather down here in the valley, but, up in the mountains, we could see at least an average winter, which is better than we've had the last two seasons."

The department closed the canyon on Oct. 7 for an installation project in the Upper North area of the canyon.

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