DENVER — Coloradans heading to the backcountry this weekend were urged to stay away from steep slopes as dangerous avalanche conditions will persist for the next several days.
Officials from the Colorado Avalanche Information Center (CAIC) wrote on their website that, “Even the areas that are MODERATE (2 of 5) avalanche danger are at the scary end of Moderate because of the size and unpredictability of avalanches.”
The forecast comes after the northern and central mountains of Colorado received a good amount of snow over the past week.
The northern mountains received nearly two feet of snow with winds early in the week creating drifting, CAIC officials said. In all, 39 avalanches were recorded in the northern mountains larger than D1 (a relatively harmless avalanche), and one or more human-triggered avalanches size D2 or larger almost every day, according to the CAIC website.
“Notably, three people were caught and partially buried in avalanches,” in the northern mountains, officials wrote.
Over in the central mountains, CAIC officials said human-triggered avalanches were reported every day over the past week following the accumulation of 1 to 2 feet of snow over the week. The avalanches were large in size, with 28 of them greater than D1, officials said. Four people were caught in avalanches on Shrine Mountain, East Vail chutes, Kebler Pass, and Mt. Axtell, they said.
In the southern mountains, “there were almost daily human-triggered avalanches ranging in size from D1.5 to D2,” despite minimal snowfall in the area CAIC officials wrote, with the first avalanche death of the season reported on Red Mountain Pass.
“Additionally, a full burial occurred at Champion Gulch that ended in a miraculous rescue, and one backcountry skier was caught and carried while skinning under Trico Peak,” CAIC officials said.
CAIC officials warned backcountry skiers to not be lured onto sleep slops, and to remember that tracks on a slope don’t indicate stability.
Conservative route choices and cautious decision-making are critical to minimize the risk of large avalanches, which could bury or kill you,” they said.
To view current avalanche conditions, click here.
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