Northern San Juan

You could trigger an avalanche where you find 8 inches or more of new or drifted snow on slopes steeper than around 35 degrees. The most dangerous slopes face the north half of the compass, where new snow forms a cohesive slab over weak older snow. Anticipate rising avalanche danger on Friday as more snow accumulates throughout the day.

Cracking in the snow surface, collapsing or “whumfing” underneath you, and easily triggered loose avalanches are all signs of instability and indicate you should retreat to lower-angled slopes. Give suspect slopes a wide margin because there is a chance you could trigger an avalanche from a distance or from below.