With a winter weather system moving into Colorado and set to bring double-digit snow totals to parts of the state, officials with the Colorado Avalanche Information Center (CAIC) are warning of increased avalanche danger.
According to the CAIC, the most dangerous area will be the Park Range, with a rating of considerable danger (3 of 5). The CAIC said that outdoor recreationists should be careful on slopes with more than eight inches of new or wind-drifted snow and avoid steep slopes with cracking or collapsing.
In a social media post, the CAIC also said that the winter storm set to hit Colorado on Saturday will favor the western Central Mountains, causing the avalanche danger in the area to rise to moderate (2 of 5). Wind slab avalanches can be triggered where there is six or more inches of freshly drifted snow.
Avalanche danger is also at moderate at Wolf Creek and Cumbres Pass.
“New snow and wind increase avalanche danger,” the CAIC wrote. “Watch out for thin slabs on slick crusts above treeline. Danger continues to rise through Sunday.”
Find more information including avalanche forecasts and maps here.