The backcountry steeps of the South San Juan Mountains surrounding Durango are ideal for avalanches. Anyone heading into the backcountry around Durango should understand the risks, and be well educated in Avalanche safety. You should have the proper gear and training to not only survive an avalanche, but hopefully avoid getting caught in an avalanche in the first place.
If you don’t fall into the ‘ready’ category, you can still enjoy our local ski resorts, sledding hills or some gentle cross country skiing or snowshoeing.
The following Durango Avalanche report is published daily by the awesome folks at the Colorado Avalanche Information Center where you can find a full report for Southern Colorado, as well as the other avalanche zones of Colorado.
Mon, Apr 22, 2019 at 6:45 AM | Today | Tomorrow | |||
| Low (1) Generally safe avalanche conditions. Watch for unstable snow on isolated terrain features. | Moderate (2) Heightened avalanche conditions on specific terrain features. Evaluate snow and terrain carefully. | ||||
| Low (1) Generally safe avalanche conditions. Watch for unstable snow on isolated terrain features. | Moderate (2) Heightened avalanche conditions on specific terrain features. Evaluate snow and terrain carefully. | ||||
| Low (1) Generally safe avalanche conditions. Watch for unstable snow on isolated terrain features. | Low (1) Generally safe avalanche conditions. Watch for unstable snow on isolated terrain features. | ||||
Danger Scale
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Summary
Avalanche conditions are generally safe today. A decent freeze last night, cooler temperatures, and cloudy skies will help reduce wet avalanche concerns near and below treeline. Continue to avoid slopes with unsupportable, hollow snow. These conditions are more prevalent on slopes with lots of vegetation or near rocks. Don’t let your guard down by LOW (1of5) danger and get surprised by triggering a small slide in drifted snow at higher elevations. Continue to assess steeper slopes or couloirs before you commit to them. Be mindful that even a small slide in extreme terrain can be dangerous if they knock you off your feet and take you for a ride.
Also beware of looming cornices that are starting to crack along ridges. A cornice failure onto a slope can trigger a larger avalanche. Give cornices a wide berth as they can break further back onto ridgelines than you might expect, and try to plan routes that avoid traveling under them. Snow showers this afternoon will transition to moderate snowfall overnight. By tomorrow morning, up to six inches of snow favoring the Wolf Creek Pass area with wind will shift our attention to dry snow avalanche problems.
Help us improve the backcountry avalanche forecast! We are working with partners in Canada to better understand how we communicate the avalanche risk, and we need your help. Please fill out this survey. It will take a few minutes, but it will help us as we work on new ways to give you the most important avalanche information.
| Monday Night | Tuesday | Tuesday Night | |
| Temperature (ºF) | 23 to 28 | 40 to 45 | 25 to 30 |
| Wind Speed (mph) | 5 to 15 | 2 to 12 | 5 to 15 |
| Wind Direction | ENE | NE | NNW |
| Sky Cover | Mostly Cloudy | Mostly Cloudy | Partly Cloudy |
| Snow (in) | 0-2W,3-6E | 0 to 2 | 0 to 1 |
Archived Forecasts
- Select Forecast: Valid
You can also listen to avalanche forecast recordings from CAIC using the player in the sidebar to the right.