Weekly Summary

Avalanche Weekly Summary - January 23, 2025

Northern Mountains
Bitter cold temperatures and a weekend storm delivered up to 12 inches of snow to the Northern Mountains, with the Front Range and Park Range receiving the heaviest accumulations. Overall avalanche activity was minimal this week, with just 17 avalanches recorded, including 11 large (D2) slides –though there was a slight increase on southeast and southwest aspects. Notable incidents included three snowshoers caught and carried (and one person partially buried) in Rocky Mountain National Park and a snowmobiler remotely triggering a large avalanche on Mt. Epworth, a site known for previous fatal accidents. Fortunately, no injuries were reported in either event.

Central Mountains
Arctic temperatures persisted this week, with 2 to 12 inches of low-density snow falling across the Central Mountains last weekend. The midweek flurries didn’t produce significant accumulations. Avalanche activity sharply decreased. The last avalanche triggered by a skier occurred last weekend. Mitigation work continues to produce a few slides, but overall activity has been minimal.

Southern Mountains
Like the rest of the state, very cold temperatures dominated the week in the Southern Mountains. Light snow last weekend brought 2 to 7 inches north of Red Mountain Pass, with little to no snow in the south. Strong winds likely caused a large natural avalanche on Red 1, the most notable event of the week. A few small skier-triggered avalanches were reported mid-week below treeline on east aspects. Avalanche activity has decreased overall, and in areas with below-average snowpack, avalanches are limited to isolated, very steep, drifted slopes. 

Heading Into the Weekend
You can still trigger a large avalanche on slopes steeper than 35 degrees, with wind-drifted slopes being the most dangerous. In some cases, multiple people could ride a slope before hitting a weaker spot and triggering a large slide. Stay cautious, choose conservative terrain, and avoid wind-loaded areas to stay safe.

Avalanche on a distance forested slope.
The last human-triggered avalanche in the Central Mountains occurred on January 18 near Crested Butte. Photo courtesy CBAC.
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Close up of avalanche debris on a small steep slope.
Three snowshoers were caught in this small avalanche in Rocky Mountain National Park earlier this week while traveling on the Emerald Lake summer trail. Two people were carried, and one person was partially buried. Thankfully, no one was injured.
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Stormy picture of an avalanche on a steep slope.
Strong winds likely caused a large natural avalanche on Red 1, the most notable event of the week in the Southern Mountains..
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