Pays d'Enhaut

A favourable avalanche situation will prevail

A favourable avalanche situation will prevail

Avalanches can in isolated cases be released in near-surface layers. Individual avalanche prone locations are to be found in particular on extremely steep shady slopes. Apart from the danger of being buried, restraint should be exercised as well in view of the danger of avalanches sweeping people along and giving rise to falls.

Avalanche situation favourable. Snowpack layering in the Jura region, on the northern flank of the Alps and in the western Lower Valais is predominantly favourable. In many places, faceted soft layers are evident in the snowpack near the rain crust which formed at the end of December. However, these layers are currently hardly prone to triggering. From the central part of the Valais over the northern part of Ticino as far as Grisons, the entire snowpack is often expansively metamorphosed (faceted) and riddled with thin melt-freeze crusts. In increasingly frequent cases you sink down to the ground on your skis. In isolated cases, particularly on very steep shady slopes in these regions, avalanches can be triggered in the old snow at ground-level. The snowpack surfaces on north-facing slopes are frequently loose and expansively metamorphosed (faceted). Steep south-facing slopes are encrusted and tend to turn to corn snow during the course of the day. At high altitudes, as well as in general in ridgeline and pass areas, the snowpack surface is frequently marked by the effects of northerly winds. In the furthermost southern regions, a continuous area-wide thin snowpack still exists only on north-facing slopes.

Following a night of clear skies it was sunny in the mountains during the daytime. Fresh snow: - Temperature: At midday at 2000 m, between +3 °C in the western and the southern regions and 0 °C in the eastern regions. Wind: Winds were blowing at light to moderate strength from northerly to northwesterly directions, intermittently at strong velocity at high altitudes. Following a night of clear skies it will be sunny during the daytime. Fresh snow: - Temperature: At midday at 2000 m, between +3 °C in the western and the southern regions and +1 °C in the eastern regions. Wind: Winds will be blowing predominantly at light strength, at moderate strength at high altitudes, from westerly to northwesterly directions.

Friday: On Thursday night, cloud cover will move in and fill the skies from the north. During the daytime on Friday in the furthermost western regions, in the Valais and on the southern flank of the Alps, it will be predominantly sunny; in the other regions of Switzerland skies will frequently be heavily overcast. Temperatures will drop significantly. In the central and eastern sectors of the northern flank of the Alps, in northern and central Grisons, as well as in the Engadine, a small amount of snowfall is expected to fall and extend down to low lying areas. The northerly-to-northwesterly wind will be blowing at strong-to-storm strength in the southern regions in particular, and in general at high altitudes; in the other regions of Switzerland at moderate-to-strong velocity. The avalanche danger levels are expected to increase from region to region, particularly at high altitudes. Saturday: In the northern regions skies will be heavily overcast for the most part, but it will remain largely dry. In the Valais and the southern regions it will be predominantly sunny. Winds will slacken off somewhat, but at high altitudes will still be blowing at mostly strong velocity. Avalanche danger levels are not expected to change significantly.