Monthly Summary

May 2026 Avalanche Summary – Colorado

Posted by: Therea Graven On: 06/03/2026

May opened with a classic spring pattern: fresh snow falling on an existing spring snowpack, followed by sun, rapid warming, and changing avalanche conditions. Throughout the month, CAIC tracked a wide range of avalanche problems, including Loose Dry, Wind Slab, Loose Wet, Wet Slab, and Cornice Fall. 

Statewide Avalanche Activity — May 2026

  • 194 avalanches recorded across the state
  • 6 avalanches size D2
  • 54 avalanches size D1.5
  • 134 avalanches size D1
  • 24 human-triggered avalanches
  • 4 people caught, 1 buried, no injuries
Dashboard from CAIC’s Avalanche Explorer showing May 2026 avalanche data. A bar chart shows the most reported avalanches in the Front Range, followed by Gunnison and the North San Juan. Smaller numbers were reported in Vail and Summit County, the Sawatch, Aspen, and the South San Juan. A trigger chart shows most avalanches were natural, with a smaller number human-triggered. A size chart shows most avalanches were D1, with fewer D1.5 avalanches and a small number of larger avalanches.
CAIC Avalanche Explorer data for May 2026 showed avalanche activity concentrated in the Front Range, Gunnison, and northern San Juan Mountains. Most reported avalanches were natural, and most were small D1 avalanches.

Early May

Following late-April storms, observers reported 15 small human-triggered avalanches in the Northern Mountains over May 1 and 2. The month’s most significant avalanche cycle followed a storm that ended on May 6 and dropped 2 to 4 feet of snow in Rocky Mountain National Park, Cameron Pass, the Park Range, and Pikes Peak, with lower totals elsewhere. 

As the sun returned, fresh dry snow transitioned to wet, unstable snow within minutes to hours, producing natural and human-triggered avalanche activity. From May 6 to 8, observers reported 42 avalanches in the Northern Mountains, primarily Loose Wet avalanches with some dry Wind Slab avalanches. Several close calls were reported, including two skiers caught and carried in the Dragon’s Tail Couloir in Rocky Mountain National Park. Fortunately, no one was seriously injured. The Central Mountains also saw a modest shed cycle, with 10 Loose Wet avalanches reported on May 8 and 26 more on May 12.

Mid-May

By mid-month, warm weather shifted conditions toward a more typical spring pattern. Forecasters noted an uptick in wet avalanche activity, especially on north-facing terrain above treeline, where dry snow was still transitioning. Reports included Loose Wet avalanches up to D1.5 and D2, isolated Wet Slabs, cornice-triggered avalanches, and wet slides gouging into older snow.

Another storm from May 17 to 19 dropped about a foot of snow on the northern Front Range and Park Range, with 4 to 6 inches elsewhere. Cool temperatures after the storm limited a widespread natural cycle, but new and drifted snow produced Wind Slab avalanche concerns above treeline in the north. In the Central Mountains, one party triggered four small Loose Dry avalanches from May 18 - 19. Activity in the Southern Mountains remained limited, with light shedding and isolated wind drifts near the tops of couloirs. 

Late May

By late May, most of Colorado had settled into a familiar spring pattern. The Central and Southern Mountains reported little to no avalanche activity as the snowpack became patchy and summer-like. In the Northern Mountains, observers reported  five small D1 avalanches in the Front Range, including two skier-triggered Wind Slab avalanches and Loose Wet avalanches confined to steep, exposed alpine terrain.

Conclusion

Overall, May was shaped by short-lived returns to winter, rapid warming, and a shrinking spring snowpack. CAIC ended daily backcountry avalanche forecasts for the season on May 31, with continued monitoring and updates as conditions warrant.

 

Snow-covered alpine terrain on Hallett Peak in Rocky Mountain National Park, with a steep chute on the Tyndall Glacier visible between rocky cliffs.
A small Loose Dry avalanche carried one backcountry tourer down a chute. The person was not buried or injured. Hallett Peak in Rocky Mountain National Park on May 1, 2026
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Snow-covered face on Mount Axtell with a likely Cornice Fall avalanche path and debris below rocky cliffs, along with smaller wet avalanche paths on nearby north-facing slopes.
Cornice Fall avalanche on Mount Axtell in the Ruby Range, observed from Gothic Peak on May 10. The avalanche was estimated at D1.5 to small D2 and likely released sometime after May 7. Nearby north-facing slopes also showed Loose Wet avalanche activity that gouged into older snow.
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Snow-covered alpine basin in the Northern San Juan Mountains with wet avalanche debris below steep, rocky slopes and patchy spring snow in the foreground.
Wet avalanche activity in Silver Basin in the Northern San Juan Mountains on May 13. An observer reported several natural Loose Wet avalanches on steep northwest-facing slopes, recent Wet Slab avalanche activity, and collapsing in the upper basin.
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