colorado avalanche

SnowBrains Podcast Ep. 91 | Brian Lazar – Deputy Director of the Colorado Avalanche Information Center

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Brian Lazar is the Deputy Director of the Colorado Avalanche Information Center. He’s been studying snow and avalanches for more than two decades, working as a forecaster, guide, educator, and researcher across Colorado, Alaska, all of the mountain west, all over South America, including Patagonia. At the Colorado Avalanche Information Center, he’s one of the people responsible for the avalanche […]
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Avalanche Near Silverton, CO, Tragically Kills Snowboarder as Friend Manages to Escape

A party of two backcountry tourers (one skier and one snowboarder) was traveling in the Middle Fork of Mineral Creek drainage, west of Silverton, Colorado. On Thursday, February 20, the pair was caught in an avalanche on a terrain feature locally known as The Nose. One escaped the avalanche, while the other was carried in the debris. Staff from a nearby […]
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Colorado Has Twice as Many Avalanche Deaths as any Other State

Avalanches can occur in mountains as snow accumulates on steep slopes. If the snowpack becomes unstable, it can suddenly release and rapidly descend downslope. Some avalanches have occurred in the Northeast but do not happen nearly as much compared to the Western U.S. Alaska, Washington, Utah, and Montana are known for being prone to the risk of avalanches. However, Colorado […]
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‘Friends of CAIC’ Organization Teams Up With Sendy Sauce to Raise Avalanche Awareness

  Friends of the Colorado Avalanche Information Center (‘Friends of CAIC’), a leading non-profit organization dedicated to supporting avalanche forecasting and education, is thrilled to announce a new collaboration with Sendy Sauce, a mountain-based hot sauce business, to create a new “Spicy Moderate” labeled hot sauce to raise awareness about Colorado’s notoriously tricky snowpack. Designed to appeal to a broad […]
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“If an Animal Can Trigger an Avalanche Right Now, So Can You.” | Suspected Wildlife-Triggered Avalanche Reported in Colorado

Human-triggered and natural avalanches aren’t the only kinds of slides backcountry travelers need to be aware of.  The Colorado Avalanche Center shared an Instagram post on Sunday showing what appears to be the remnants of a large avalanche that was triggered by an animal in the Colorado Rockies. According to the CAIC, an avalanche report was submitted by a hunter […]
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Martin Kuprianowicz |
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Colorado Avalanche Information Center Launches New Website With Dynamic Avalanche Forecasting

As early-season snow storms begin to blanket the Rockies, the Colorado Avalanche Information Center (CAIC) will begin to issue its daily weather and avalanche forecasts a little differently. On November 1, 2022, the Colorado Avalanche Information Center launched a new website, creating dynamic forecasts and avalanche threat levels, as well as daily 48-hour forecasts issued every afternoon at 4:30 pm. […]
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2 Skiers Caught, 1 Injured in Colorado Avalanche Yesterday

10-20″ of new snow in Colorado over the weekend lead to snowpack instability and avalanches. Two backcountry skiers were caught in an avalanche on Berthoud Pass, Colorado yesterday and both received minor injuries. “Recent observations are pointing to some weakness in the snowpack at this time. These weaknesses may become more in your face by Monday with the clearing skies and warming temperatures. Sunshine in May can have a rapid impact on new snow.” – Colorado Avalanche Information Center […]
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Cat Skiing Guide Takes 400-Foot Ride in Aspen, CO Avalanche:

A tour guide with Aspen Mountain Powder Tours is safe after being caught in an avalanche on Thursday morning. The guide was able to stay above the snow, but was carried over 400 feet. No other skiers were caught in the avalanche. “He was never submersed in the avalanche, but did get swept through some trees and suffered a knee injury,” says guide Greg Shaffran in his report with the Colorado Avalanche Information Center. Fortunately, an Aspen ski patroller was working nearby digging avalanche pits, and was able to bring the injured guide down to receive […]

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3rd Avalanche Death of 2014/15 for USA Yesterday in Colorado

The USA just experienced its 3rd Avalanche Death of the 2014/15 winter season. The victim was a snowshoer who was killed yesterday at around 12,000-feet in the Grey’s and Torrey’s area of Colorado. Grey’s and Torrey’s are 14,000-foot peaks. The avalanche danger was rated at moderate the day of the avalanche. Two men and a woman were ascending the mountain when an avalanche […]
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Early Season Snowfall Leads to Early Season Instabilities in Colorado

The run out path of the avalanche from earlier in the week in Colorado

Earlier in the week, two Colorado skiers triggered a small slab avalanche while hiking a couloir on Mt. Owen in the Ruby Range. The skiers were partially buried, but neither were injured. The slide occurred on a NE aspect at an elevation of 12,600 feet on a 39° slope. The initial slide started on a 6″ storm slab and broke through several graupel layers where it ran on a 4cm melt-freeze crust from storms in early October. The two were on foot, climbing a north-facing chute locally know as “Jenga.” They were about halfway up when the avalanche broke above them. They braced through the […]
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