Steamboat & Flat Tops

You can trigger a small avalanche where you find more than about 6 inches of drifted snow. Look for snow to accumulate throughout the day on Friday. Easterly winds will drift new snow onto typically scoured slopes.

The bigger hazard is triggering a slide that's big enough to bury you. If you find the wrong spot on a slope, like an area with uneven snow coverage and large rocks protruding from the snowpack, you can trigger a slide that breaks on buried weak layers. Previous scoured north and northwest-facing slopes near the ridgetop fit this description, especially if they're crossloaded with new snow.

To lower your risk of avalanches, choose slopes with a consistently deep snowpack and no terrain traps. Look for and avoid drifted snow below steep ridges and in gullies.