Northern San Juan

Warm, sunny days and multiple nights of non-freezing temperatures increases the chance to trigger a wet snow avalanche a foot or two deep. Avoid steep slopes and areas below cliffs where you sink past your shins into wet, cohesionless snow. Loose wet slides can gouge deeper while traveling downhill, and could trigger a larger, more destructive slab avalanche. Consider the terrain below you, where a smaller avalanche could have big consequences. Beware of trap door conditions where you easily fall through the snowpack, and plan your exit strategy so you can travel on the most-supportive snow surfaces.

Isolated, wind-drifted slabs may exist on high-elevation slopes where you might trigger a small avalanche. Even small avalanches in complex or extreme terrain can knock you off your feet and send you on a dangerous ride in places like steep couloirs, hanging snow fields, or steep faces with cliffs. On Friday, a small avalanche swept a skier off their feet, injuring them as they flushed through complicated terrain.