Northern San Juan

The most dangerous areas are wind-loaded slopes above treeline where you find newly formed slabs of snow around 8 inches deep. An avalanche triggered in a wind-drifted area could break wider across the slope, deeply to the ground, and produce a larger slide than you expect. Avoid places below ridgelines, in gullies, and on the backside of steep rollovers with a rounded snow surface or where the snow feels hard underfoot. Cracking in the snow surface, rumbling collapses, or recent avalanche activity are indicators of which slopes to avoid. Safer travel options exist on southerly-facing terrain or slopes less than about 30 degrees in steepness.

A large winter storm begins to impact the Southern Mountains overnight Thursday lasting through the weekend. Expect the avalanche danger to rise quickly as snow and wind build dangerous slabs of snow onto a weak snowpack.