Southern San Juan

You can trigger an avalanche in wind-drifted snow on upper-elevation slopes facing northwest through northeast to southeast. Avoid slopes with fresh cornice growth, sculpted features, or smooth lens-like pillows. Retreat to more wind-sheltered terrain or less-steep slopes if you experience cracking in the surface snow.

Triggering an avalanche that breaks near the ground becomes more difficult with each passing day, but if you do, the consequences remain serious. Choose to travel in consistently deep areas where the snowpack is more than five feet thick. Avoid thin areas and slopes where the depth varies around exposed rocks.