Hochschwab Mountains

UPDATE: storm-strength winds - HIGH avalanche danger above 1400m! Trigger-sensitive snowdrifts even below the treeline.

UPDATE: storm-strength winds - HIGH avalanche danger above 1400m! Trigger-sensitive snowdrifts even below the treeline.

Avalanche danger above 1400m is HIGH (Danger Level 4), below that altitude danger is CONSIDERABLE. The danger of naturally triggered avalanches in steep terrain persists. Avalanches can fracture down to deeper layers and grow to large size. Gale-strength winds are creating numerous avalanche prone locations. Snowdrifts accumulate in all aspects, near to and distant from ridgelines. The snowpack is highly prone to triggering down to the treeline. Danger zones are numerous and hard to recognize in open terrain. Slab avalanches can easily be triggered by the weight of one person and grow to medium-to-large size. Also remote triggerings are possible. Naturally triggered wet-snow activity in steep forested and grass-covered terrain will recede as temperatures drop. On steep grassy slopes, naturally triggered glide-snow avalanches continue to be possible.

In the last 24 hours there has been an additional 50 cm of fresh snow registered widespread, areas below 1000-1200m have been moistened and destabilized by intermittent rainfall. Only when temperatures drop during the day today will the wet-snow problem recede below 1200 m. Due to temporary rise in temperatures on Friday the snowpack was able to settle down to 1400 m. On Saturday, not much fresh snow is anticipated but the snow from the last few days will be transported by gale-strength winds and far-reaching snowdrifts genearted. Weak layers occur inside the fresh snow and at the borders to the snowpack which are highly prone to triggering. Deeply embedded inside the snow cover are layers of faceted crystals bordering against melt-freeze crusts which weaken the entire snowpack.

In the Niedere Tauern, heavy clouds will accumulate, but the greater part of the snowfall is over. In isolated cases on Saturday, snowfall is possible down to low lying areas but due to gale-strength winds only a small amount will be deposited and this will be intensively transported. Further south, dispersed clouds, hardly any precipitation. The NW winds will intensify, reach gale-strength even in low lying areas. Temperatures will drop. At 2000 m, from -6 to -13 degrees; at 1500 m from -3 to -8 degrees.

The high-precipitation phase is over. On Sunday, still stormy winds. Starting on Monday, pleasant mountain weather conditions with some sunshine. The avalanche situation is expeged to calm.