View from Špindlerův Mlýn in the Krkonoše Mountains to the avalanche sites of Kozí hřbety (left) and Luční hora (right) in a picture from January 14, 2019.
Špindlerův Mlýn (Trutnovsk Region) – In the Krkonoše mountains, the avalanche danger dropped from level three to level two on the five-part international scale. The second avalanche level means a moderate risk of avalanches, conditions for hikes are mostly safe. There is 100 to 160 centimeters of snow on the Krkonoše ridges, the Krkonoše Mountain Service reported today on the website. The third level of avalanche danger was valid from March 9. A strong wind stopped the upper section of the Sněžka cable car today. The cable car can be operated up to a wind speed of 60 km/h, the lift operators said on the website. The lower section is in operation.
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“After the warming and the rain, it cooled sharply on the ridges, which created an ice crust, on which 25 cm of new snow fell during the last snowfall, combined with a strong north-west wind,” said Robert Dlouhý from the Krkonoše Mountain Service in today's avalanche forecast.
More snow is on the leeward slopes of northeast to southwest directions. “Snow slabs have formed here from blown snow. Plate avalanches from blown snow can occur here. During the day, temperatures will rise above zero degrees Celsius and precipitation will be rainy. Avalanche release is possible mainly with a large additional load, especially on steep slopes mostly listed in the avalanche forecast. The possibility of spontaneous release of very large avalanches is not expected. The tendency of avalanche danger is persistent,” said Dlouhý.
At the Luční bouda ridge at an altitude of 1415 meters, there was fog in the morning, around zero degrees Celsius and 125 centimeters of snow.
Avalanche locations on the Czech side of the Giant Mountains are Kotelní jámy, the Bílé Labe valley from Bouda u Bílé Labe, Kozí hřbety and Labský, Obří, Dlouhý and Modrý důl. On the Polish side, these are the Snow pits, Kociol Lomniczki or Bialy Jar. There is no danger of avalanches in the Krkonoše mountains.
The first level of avalanche danger in the Czech part of the mountains was announced for the first time this winter season last December 12. The highest degree of avalanche risk, which was declared in the current winter season in the Krkonoše Mountains, was the third, three times successively. In the period of the third avalanche danger declared for the first time in the season, between February 1 and 9, three large avalanches with lengths of 700 to 1000 meters occurred in the Czech part of the Krkonoše Mountains, namely in the Small and Great Boiler Pits and in the Obří dola. No one was hurt.
The third degree in the Czech part of the mountains was valid from February 1 to February 9, when the avalanche risk dropped to the second degree. It rose to level three a second time on February 26, with the avalanche danger downgraded from level three to level two on March 3. At the time, the third stage was not announced on the Polish side of the mountains. Avalanche category three was declared for the third time after heavy snowfall on March 9, and the avalanche risk dropped to level two today.
