Southern San Juan

The snowpack is getting stronger, and it is getting harder to trigger avalanches that break on deeper weak layers. Avoid areas around rocks or cliffs or near the margins of slopes where weak layers may be close to the surface, making them easier to impact. Avoid slopes where you find evidence of recent wind-loading such as fresh cornices or sculpted pillows of snow. If you trigger an avalanche in the wind-drifted snow it could step down. You can always stick to slopes with a slope angle less than about 30 degrees with no steeper slopes above you.