Vail & Summit County

A Special Avalanche Advisory is in effect from Friday evening through Sunday for portions of the Front Range, Summit County, and the Vail area, including the Gore Range. A winter storm will dramatically change conditions, making it easy for backcountry travelers to trigger dangerous avalanches this weekend.

You can trigger an avalanche from a distance and below. The most dangerous slopes are those where winds are drifting snow. If you trigger an avalanche in the surface snow, it is likely to step down to buried weak layers and perhaps the ground. You can find safer travel on slopes less than about 30 degrees or on slopes sheltered from the wind at lower elevations.