The snow in the San Juan Mountains has some of the most dangerous avalanches in the world. There are three variables which are snow pack, terrain and weather.
The avalanches in these mountains are caused by an unstable layer in the powder on top of the snow pack. This condition is completely influenced by the weather and the terrain. Because the area in these mountains are so susceptible to avalanches, it is the duty of the people to bomb the avalanche chutes to make sure the mountain is all safe, and to understand all the causes of these avalanches.
The terrain in the San Juan mountains differ form other mountain ranges because the San Juan is a lot more steep. All these mountains need for it to erupt is 38 degrees. Also 38 degrees is pretty much the slope for every run on our mountains. Because there are no runs without rocks any where snow cant hold itself together as well as it should be able to.
The weather is also a huge cause of avalanches. First our weather is usually pretty sunny the top layer of our snow melts, and then over night the melted snow freezes and becomes ice. For example it might snow the next day; which creates an automatic avalanche when any pressure is added.
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