I don't know if there is a way to predict which steps are going to break, but if not this game feels unfinishable and is purely random, considering that the faulty steps seem to change everytime you die...
Viewing post in 33 Steps: A Hermetic Journey jam comments
If you are playing on a cell phone, a subtle vibration will clue you in that danger is just a step above you. Otherwise, there is a "squeaky sound." If you are on the middle path, it means that you should turn left or right, but which one is unbreakable is based on the intuition of a player - a hermetic initiate. Each restart is a reincarnation of an initiate, meaning the life path will not be the same. That's why you can't rely on memorizing which step is unbreakable.
I hope this explanation gives you a better sense of the hermetic journey and game mechanic.