Northern San Juan

It’s becoming harder to trigger a large avalanche that breaks deeper within the snowpack. The most dangerous slopes face northeast and east at upper elevations. Here, winds formed a cohesive layer of stiff snow above weak snow, especially near treeline. Avoid traveling near common trigger points, such as the edges of slopes where the margins of a cohesive slab are the thinnest. Give yourself a wide buffer from convex rollovers, rocky outcrops, and suspect slopes steeper than around 35 degrees. You may not experience any noticeable signs of instability before triggering an avalanche.