Hochschwab Mountains

Fresh drifts at high altitudes; wet-snow and glide-snow avalanches at low/intermediate altitudes

Fresh drifts at high altitudes; wet-snow and glide-snow avalanches at low/intermediate altitudes

Considerable avalanche danger ! Above the treeline the snow is being transported to NE/E/SE facing slopes, fresh drifts are accumulating where distant from ridgelines they can be triggered even by 1 person. At medium altitudes and where there is lot of snow, some wet-snow avalanches cannot be excluded. Also glide-snow avalanches are still a threat. Avoid glide cracks.

Due to milder temperatures on Friday, then dropping on Saturday, the snowpack has gained stability. Solar radiation on Saturday afternoon also helped the snow to settle on sunny slopes. Due to stormy winds which will begin during the night, and last all day long on Sunday, new drifts will accumulate, often poorly bonded to the snow below them. At low altitudes the snow is forfeiting its firmness due to rain impact.

With the stormy NW air current on Saturday night, a marked perturbance will reach the Eastern Alps. From the start on Sunday, gray skies, snowfall above 1200 m, stormy NW winds. As of midday, clouds will disperse from the west, a bit of sunshine is expected. At 2000 m: -5 degrees; at 1500 m: -2 degrees. Strong W/NW winds all day long, on the eastern rim of the Alps reaching storm strength. On Monday, heavy clouds and snowfall/rainfall. The snowfall level will ascend from 1000 slowly up to 1600 m. Clouds will disperse in the afternoon.

Loss of snowpack firmness due to rain. Main danger wet-snow and loose-snow avalanches.