This article discusses the heightened avalanche risk in Turnagain Pass, Alaska this winter due to an unstable snowpack. The snowpack contains two persistent weak layers, one from a crust of ice from early winter and one from buried surface hoar from mid January. These layers have caused a number of human-triggered avalanches in the pass. The risk is improving as the season progresses, but human-triggered avalanches are still possible. Sun exposure is also a factor in determining avalanche risk.