Southern San Juan

The most dangerous areas are wind-loaded slopes that face northwest through northeast to southeast at upper elevations. There you can find a thick slab of cohesive snow on top of weaker snow layers. On any slope where you find more than about 10 inches of wind-drifted snow, avalanches have the potential to grow larger in size. Pay attention to the direction a slope faces and steer clear of places with a smooth, rounded snow surface or where the snow feels hard underfoot. You can decrease your chances of triggering an avalanche by avoiding steep, wind-loaded slopes near ridgelines or below cornices.