Sawatch

Strong winds are drifting snow over a weak snowpack creating dangerous avalanche conditions. You can trigger an avalanche in the new snow that can step down to layers buried up to three feet deep. A slide that breaks on these layers would become very large and have catastrophic consequences. These slides can be triggered from thinner spots in the snowpack that could be now obscured by freshly drifted snow. Strong winds may have loaded snow further down on slopes so watch for and avoid wind-drifted areas. These can be identified by their smooth, wave-like appearance and can be on steep rollovers and gullies. You can find safer travel options by avoiding wind-loaded slopes and terrain steeper than about 30 degrees with no steep slopes above.