Steamboat & Flat Tops

You can trigger avalanches at upper elevations where you find more than about a foot of recently drifted snow. Recent heavy snow and strong winds formed thick slabs over weak layers buried 1 to 3 feet deep in the snowpack. Some avalanches could be triggered remotely. The most dangerous slopes are recently wind-loaded and face the north half of the compass. Safer conditions can be found on south-facing slopes and where the storm snow is still cohesionless.

A winter storm starting on Thursday won't increase the avalanche danger during the day. But you should expect the danger to increase quickly as snow totals exceed a foot or more by the end of the day Friday.