Val de Travers

Considerable avalanche danger will be encountered over a wide area. Fresh wind slabs require caution.

Snowpack

The moderate to strong southwesterly winds will transport the loose snow. Snowdrift accumulations that are prone to triggering are developing in many places. All the freshly fallen snow and the snowdrift of the past week is settling and stabilising. Especially in the inneralpine regions of Valais and Grisons and on the southern flank of the Alps, weak layers deep in the old snowpack may still be released in some places. Below around 2000 m, layers of the snowpack that are near the ground are sometimes moist. This means that gliding avalanches are still to be expected. In many areas, there is about twice as much snow as there normally is at the beginning of December. Only on the southern flank of the Alps are snow depths below average.

Weather forecast through Tuesday, 05.12.2023

Some precipitation will fall during the night in the west and south. During the day it will be mostly cloudy. Some snow will fall in the west and north at times. The snowfall level will drop from around 1000 m down to low altitudes. It will be partly sunny in the south and on the Main Alpine Ridge in Valais.

Fresh snow

Between Monday afternoon and Tuesday afternoon, above 1200 m, snowfall levels will be as follows:

• western and northern Lower Valais, western Jura: 15 to 30 cm;
• Fribourg and Vaud Alps: 5 to 15 cm;
• elsewhere, either lower levels of snowfall or dry.

Temperature

At midday at 2000 m, around -6 °C.

Wind

The wind will move from the southwest to the west.

• It will be moderate to strong in the mountains, and stormy at times in the Jura and in the high Alpine regions.
• It will be weak to moderate on the southern flank of the Alps

Observed weather review Monday, 04.12.2023

The night was initially clear before becoming increasingly cloudy. During the day, in the north, it was occasionally brighter with foehn winds, but otherwise mostly cloudy. In the west, precipitation set in at around midday, but otherwise it remained mostly dry. The snowfall level rose to around 1000 m.

Fresh snow

A few centimetres of snowfall were registered in the west.

Temperature

At midday at 2000 m, between -2 °C in the north and -7 °C in the south.

Wind

• During the night, winds were initially mostly weak to moderate; during the day, they were increasingly strong from the south to southwest
• They were weak to moderate on the southern flank of the Alps.

Outlook through Thursday, 07.12.2023Wednesday

It will be mostly cloudy in the north. Some snow will fall at times. It will be fairly sunny in the south and in southern Valais. The danger of dry avalanches will hardly change in the north and will decrease slightly in the south. Gliding avalanches could still occur at any time except on the southern flank of the Alps.

Thursday

On Thursday, it will be fairly sunny in the mountains. The zero-degree level will rise to around 2000 m in the west. The danger of dry avalanches will decrease in all regions. An increased number of gliding avalanches are to be expected.