Snow report Oberstdorf, 01/15/2021

Snow condition

first of all, the positive things:- in the illertal (e.g. near immenstadt) there is at least 20cm of snow. more than there has been for decades. all descents should be possible without restrictions. this is very rare. in the mountains, west of the iller, it gets a lot more with every meter of altitude.where i dug, in the ostertal at 1400m, there is 110cm on the north side, 60cm of which is very loose, but bound pow, on a slightly harder layer.

Snow quality

this layer probably formed in the night from tue. to mi. when it rained for a short time up to this altitude.the pow that fell afterwards came with little wind and holds very poorly on this layer.i could not release the ct, in the approx. 25° steep terrain, always broke before.

very tricky !!! as soon as you leave the ascent track, you can hear clear settling noises at every 2nd step, in all expos and steepnesses. at the hairpin bends, sometimes the entire pow from the last precipitation period comes off as a track wedge (is already quite thick at approx. 60cm).the second and third pictures show a very large, freshly snow-covered loose snow slide. it came from the steep forest, above the track, approx. 40° terrain and went down for at least 200m, right over the forest road. probably triggered by snow slides from the trees. the "avalanche track" is surprisingly long for the steepness of the run-out terrain.

Overall impression

the one star is of course in need of explanation and
results as follows:
- there was simply too much fresh snow. what was previously too little was now far too much.
- making tracks is extremely strenuous and no longer possible above a certain (not very steep) gradient. you simply can't get your skis out of the snow.
- where you could ski and that is exclusively terrain >30°, it is too dangerous (lawi level 4 is absolutely correct).
- on all slopes below that, you sink up to your thighs in deep pow and have to push downhill with your poles. skiing downhill is only really possible in the ascent track.
- today it was actually a lucky circumstance that the sun only showed up sporadically and thick fog rolled in from midday onwards. this kept the snow on the trees and the risk of snow breakage was calculable. just like the triggering of loose snow avalanches. it will be different tomorrow!
- in addition, the corona crisis is also showing ski mountaineers its negative side very clearly. keeping your distance was frowned upon in the past and groups of skiers following each other in single file, without safety distances, was the usual picture. with the current amount of snow, nobody voluntarily steps out of their lane and overtaking or passing doesn't work in deep fresh snow if the person being overtaken doesn't stop. so keeping your distance is actually not possible.
a few tips for those who really want to go tomorrow:
- arrive early. due to all the snow, most of the access roads are snow-covered and very narrow. the same applies to the few parking spaces.
- beginners are borderline challenged by the current snow depth (sic!), both on the ascent and the descent.
- if you have to make tracks to do your tour, you should have a certain ability to suffer (and of course a certain basic level of fitness). in steeper terrain, it's definitely not fun for very long.
- take the fattest poles you have (to compensate for the weight, you may be able to do without a helmet) this will definitely help on the ascent and descent.
steinski are def. no longer an issue, at least in meadow terrain. it may be different on blown-off edges.
- forest passages and passing steeper slopes require careful consideration, especially when the sun is not attenuated.
- it is certainly a good idea not to choose an ambitious destination.
Conclusion:
you don't necessarily have to go on a ski tour tomorrow!