Northern San Juan

On most steep slopes, slabs of cohesive snow sit above older, weaker snow and where you can trigger an avalanche large enough to bury or injure you. Triggering a smaller avalanche in the recent storm snow could provoke a larger slide that breaks deeper into weak snow layers near the ground and broader across slopes than you might expect. You may trigger an avalanche from below a slope, or from a distance, so give yourself an extra buffer around bigger terrain. Heed the warning signs of cracking and audible collapses, and stick to slopes around 30 degrees without steeper slopes overhead for safer travel options.