A triple threat of colder temperatures, strong winds, and areas of heavy snow over the past few days has increased the avalanche danger heading into the weekend for some of the state’s backcountry areas, according to the Colorado Avalanche Information Center. This threat has been especially prevalent in areas that have experienced considerable snowfall.
Additionally, as we go closer to the weekend, it is possible that some of our southern mountains, including the San Juan and Sangre de Cristo Mountains, will receive as much as one foot of snow.
“We’ve moved away from wet avalanche activity and back into a concern for dangerous wind-drifted snow,” said Brian Lazar, the deputy director of the Colorado Avalanche Information Center. “We’re facing a new threat.” If you are traveling in the backcountry and you notice snow cracking under your feet, snowshoes, or snowmachine, this is a good indication that you are in a wind-drifted area, as stated by the Canadian Association of Snowboarders (CAIC).
By Sunday, conditions will have returned to being warmer and dryer, and avalanche conditions will have reverted to widespread wet avalanche activity. In the event that we see conditions that are more reminiscent of spring, the CAIC recommends that you begin and complete your day at an earlier hour. Every person who goes on a trip into the backcountry should always have the appropriate safety equipment with them, such as an avalanche transceiver, a probe, and a shovel, and they should also be familiar with how to utilize these items. The Colorado Avalanche Information Center makes it possible to get daily avalanche forecasts on the internet.
