Vail & Summit County

You can trigger a large avalanche that breaks on crusts and weak layers buried up to four feet deep. The most dangerous slopes face easterly. Avoid these slopes, especially below steep corniced ridgelines, convex rollovers, and gully features. You may not get any signs of unstable snow before you trigger a large and dangerous avalanche. If you dig and find buried weak layers within the upper snowpack, move to terrain less than about 30 degrees.

A pair of recent accidents highlight the consequence of triggering a large avalanche. On Friday, three backcountry skiers triggered and were caught in a large avalanche near Marble. Sadly one died. You can read the preliminary report here. Search and rescue operations remain underway for another accident Sunday afternoon in Maroon Bowl, near Aspen Highlands.