Hochschwab Mountains

Moderate avalanche danger due to increasing daytime naturally triggered wet-snow and glide-snow avalanches. On shady slopes, heed persistent weak layer!

Moderate avalanche danger due to increasing daytime naturally triggered wet-snow and glide-snow avalanches. On shady slopes, heed persistent weak layer!

Avalanche danger is moderate all day long. At high altitudes the danger zones lie on shady slopes between northern and eastern aspects. A persistent weak layer threatens, slab avalanches can be triggered in transition zones from deep to shallow snow even by minimum additional loading. Avalanches can grow to large size. Due to solar radiation and daytime warming, increasing naturally triggered avalanche activity at all altitudes, plus wet-snow avalanches. On sunny slopes, large-sized avalanches are possible, even endangering exposed transportation routes.

Due to warmth the snowpack has been able to settle. On sunny slopes it is moist at all altitudes. During Wednesday night on sunny slopes a melt-freeze crust will form widespread, then on Thursday it will lose its firmness rapidly. On shady slopes at high altitude, a persistent weak layer threatens: weak layers deep in the snowpack are evident. On sunny slopes the snowpack can glide over smooth grassy slopes.

On Thursday, sunny weather, a few clouds will not disturb. Winds will be light, intensifying in the Northern Alps in the afternoon, reaching 70 km/hr. Mild even at high altitudes, but temperatures will gradually drop. Zero-degree level initially over 3000 m, then dropping. At midday at 2000 m: 0 degrees.

As temperatures drop, the danger of wet-snow avalanches will decrease.