Allgäu Alps West

Fresh snow and drifts prone to triggering

Fresh snow and drifts prone to triggering

Fresh fallen snow and snowdrift accumulations are easily triggered. Slab avalanchess can be triggered by minimum additional loading and grow to medium-sized releases. Settling noises when treading the snowpack and fractures on the surface are indicators of imminent danger. Danger zones occur in wind-loaded steep terrain, behind sharp drops in the landscape, in gullies and bowls. Particularly in high-altitude west, north and east-facing slopes, avalanches can fracture down to ground-level layers of the snowpack and grow to large size. In very steep terrain, also loose-snow avalanches are possible due to solar radiation and daytime warming.

Fresh fallen snow and snowdrifts frequently lie deposited atop older snowdrift accumulations. Amid intermittently strong winds it will be transported and will generate new snowdrift masses, especially in high-altitude pass and ridgeline zones. They are prone to triggering. The mid-part of the snowpack consists of well-consolidated, compact layers which in shady slopes blanket a poorly-structured snowpack fundament.

Quite sunny in the mountains. Temperature at 2000m: from -8 to -3 degrees; at 3000m: -11 to -7 degrees. Initially brisk northeasterly winds at high altitude, later blowing at moderate velocity.

Gradually receding avalanche danger