New to the backcountry? Colorado Avalanche Information Center launched a free safety class.

Because sound avalanche awareness isn t fundamental just for ski mountaineers who climb towering backcountry peaks in search of pristine powder slopes the Colorado Avalanche Information Center is aiming to raise avalanche awareness this winter among novice backcountry skiers and snowshoers who think they re touring in relatively tame terrain In partnership with the American Institute for Avalanche Research and Training AIARE and the Seattle-based Northwest Avalanche Center the CAIC is launching Avalanche Aware a free on-demand online primer The campaign is an hour-long self-paced module that gives inexperienced backcountry travelers basic information to help them stay safe Colorado has a multitude of popular backcountry trails for ski touring and snowshoeing that traverse relatively flat terrain that will not slide but those trails sometimes are located at the foot of slopes that could produce avalanches from above under the right circumstances The Avalanche Aware online venture is designed to help inexperienced users know where and when it s safe One of the wonderful things about Colorado is the amount of winter-recreation possibilities reported CAIC director Ethan Greene People need to remember that anytime we have snow on a steep surface avalanches are manageable We want people to go into the backcountry with good knowledge about avalanche conditions so they can enjoy the Colorado mountains and come home safely The Avalanche Aware curriculum was first made available in for in-person training sessions and last year there were more than of those events in Colorado alone For the first time this year anyone can do it online at will We re trying to expand the options people can get this content Greene noted There were avalanche fatalities in the United States last winter In Colorado nine backcountry users were injured and three were killed The Colorado record for fatalities is which occurred in and In there were Advanced avalanche mentoring involves multi-day courses that include hands-on sessions in the field The Avalanche Aware venture is more basic teaching students where to find and interpret local avalanche forecasts recognize avalanche terrain learn clues to hazardous snow and identify areas where slides are the majority likely to occur Greene also urges novice snowshoers and skiers to check the CAIC s daily avalanche forecasts before venturing into the backcountry as experienced ski mountaineers do even if they re heading to moderate terrain Those reports rate avalanche vulnerability at numerous locations around the state on a -to- rating scale Low Moderate Considerable High and Extreme Conditions can change on a daily basis Related Articles CDOT to shut down Vail Pass construction on Friday for winter hiatus Here s how to ease your ski resort parking headaches this winter CAIC resumed daily reports for the ski season on Nov They are available online and on the CAIC app The avalanche danger in the mountains right now is quite low Green mentioned and the weather forecast doesn t look like that s going to change in the next insufficient days maybe in the next week Subscribe to our weekly newsletter The Adventurist to get outdoors news sent straight to your inbox