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Two skiers managed to avoid getting caught in avalanches near Silverton on Sunday after triggering back-to-back slides following a storm that dumped up to 2 feet of snow in the San Juan Mountains.

One skier was on a north-facing ridge near Silverton Mountain when they triggered a slide, the Colorado Avalanche Information Center said. Their skiing partner then triggered a second slide.

The account was detailed in the season's first incident report penned by the center, whose forecasters analyze snowpack and weather patterns to offer insight and safety resources for high country travelers navigating avalanche terrain. It also compiles detailed accounts of reported avalanches.

Both skiers skied out safely, the report said, without naming them. A previous report indicated that one of the skiers was briefly caught in the slide.


"Nearly every fall, avalanches catch eager riders and late-season hikers off-guard," the CAIC wrote in an Instagram post Monday. "Hunters traveling through the high country need to exercise caution on steep, snow-covered terrain."

About one to two people are caught in avalanches in October, based on reports collected over the past 10 seasons, the center said.

The center urged recreators to keep avalanche safety in mind while on steep slopes in the high country, especially in Colorado's southern mountains.

The weekend storm brought an early start to winter in many parts of the state with 10 inches of snow at Loveland ski area, 9 inches on Copper Mountain, 8 inches in Arapahoe Basin and 7.5 inches in Breckenridge, according to forecasters at the National Weather Service's office in Boulder.

Wolf Creek Ski Area in Pagosa Springs announced it will open Tuesday for the season after getting 26 inches of snow over the past week.

A winter weather advisory, issued by the weather service, remains in effect until noon Monday for more snowfall, between 4 to 8 inches, for elevations above 9,000 feet across the western Front Range mountains.

The CAIC will begin its daily weather and backcountry avalanche forecasts starting Nov. 1, at avalanche.state.co.us

UPDATED: This story was updated at 10:40 a.m. Monday after the CAIC amended its report that a skier triggered and skied in front of an avalanche, but was not caught in one.