Winter Forecasting Schedule

We will begin issuing Zone Avalanche Summaries and Discussions on Thursday, November 15 by 8:00am, and will issue a product every day for each of our ten zones until sometime in April. We will continue to issue Zone Backcountry Weather Forecasts, for 11,000 feet, twice daily by 6:00am and 2:00pm until the end of April.

You can check current weather conditions on the Weather Stations page, and recent observations on the Field Reports page. Let us know what you see out there by Submitting an Observation.

 Recent Avalanche Activity and Observations 11/8/2018

We have had reports of natural or human triggered avalanches every day since 11/2/2018 in the Northern and/or Central Mountains. Most of these avalanches have occurred on previously or actively wind-loaded north through northeast to east-facing aspects. Many of these avalanches broke at the ground. Some of these avalanches were triggered remotely or from the bottom of the slope. A few had crown depths over two and a half feet deep. These avalanche are easily large enough to take you for a dangerous ride and bury you. To help mitigate your risk from dangerous avalanches, avoid travel on and under steep wind-loaded northerly or east-facing slopes.   

     *  Wednesday 11/7/2018: A group of skiers on South Diamond Peak on Cameron Pass unintentionally triggered a Wind Slab avalanche as they dropped onto the east-facing side of the ridge. The avalanche ran into the flats below. A group on Berthoud Pass also triggered an avalanche on a previously wind-loaded northeast-facing slope that broke at the ground. 

     *  Tuesday 11/6/2018: Riders unintentionally triggered a small avalanche in the Little Professor slide path in the Vail and Summit County zone. Riders reported an avalanche on South Diamond Peak in the northern Front Range zone. CAIC forecasters working on Independence Pass noted multiple avalanches on northeast and east-facing aspects in the Sawatch zone.

     *  Monday 11/5/2018: The Arapahoe Basin Ski Patrol remotely triggered a slides while approaching a slope to do avalanche mitigation and this first slide sympathetically released another slide in a different path. CAIC forecasters noted a natural avalanche on Loveland Pass. A party reported natural avalanche activity on Berthoud Pass. Observers in the Gunnison zone reported natural avalanche activity on northeast and east facing aspects above treeline.  

     *  Sunday 11/4/2018: Backcountry skiers triggered an avalanche from below in Dry Gulch, in the Front Range. CDOT triggered larger slide in the 7 Sisters on Loveland Pass while doing explosives mitigation. The Loveland Ski Patrol remotely triggered an avalanche while approaching a slope to dig a snow pit.

     *  Saturday 11/3/2018: A group in Dry Gulch, in the Front Range zone, unintentionally triggered an avalanche that broke on weak layers near the ground. CAIC forecasters working in the Gunnison zone triggered another small slide in Schofield Pass.

     *  Friday 11/2/2018: A backcountry tourer triggered and was caught in a small avalanche near Hoosier Pass in Summit County. The party triggered the slide from below. In the adjacent Front Range zone another group noted natural avalanche activity and widespread cracking and collapsing in Butler Gulch.