Bavarian Prealps East

AVOID snowdrifts and slopes with glide cracks

AVOID snowdrifts and slopes with glide cracks

Avalanche danger is moderate. Main problem: wet snow. Due to strong warming impulses and solar radiation, the wind-loaed slopes and steep rocky slopes can be expected to have naturally triggered, in some cases large-sized loose-snow and slab avalanches. Particularly when superrficially triggered avalanches fracture down to deeper layers of the snowpack. On steep, smooth grass-covered slopes and in forest clearances the snowpack can glide over the ground as a whole. Glide-cracks (fishbones) are red flags. Glide-snow avalanches can grow to medium size. Apart from that there is a snowdrift problem. Some danger zones occur in steep ridgeline terrain in N/E/SE aspects and in freshly wind-loaded gullies and bowls, where the weight of one sole skier is sufficient to trigger a slab avalanche of medium size.

On Monday night amid strong wind there ws an additional 10 cm of fresh snow registered. The drifts of recent days lie deposited on wind-crusts and melt-freeze crusts and powdery snow and are insufficiently bonded. The drifts are thus prone to triggering. At intermediate altitudes the snow has settled and has become superficially moist. During the nights, melt-freeze crusts form, the soften up during the daytime amid higher temperatures and solar radiation. Due to the snowpack becoming thoroughly wet, it is further weakened.

Avalanche danger will recede gradually over the next few days.