Winter conditions in the mountains. Be especially careful. An avalanche double in the Tatra Mountains

On Saturday, snow began to fall quite heavily in southern Poland. In the Sudetes, Tatras and Beskids, a cover up to 10 centimeters thick may accumulate. Mountain rescuers warned on social media that hiking in the mountains in such conditions could be very dangerous, and appealed to take the necessary equipment with you – clothing appropriate to the weather, crampons for shoes, a helmet, an ice ax and an avalanche ABC – a detector, a probe and a shovel.

IMWM alerts against storms and snowfall are also in force.

There is more snow and frost on the Tatra peaks. On Saturday, there was 70 centimeters of snow on Kasprowy Wierch, and the temperature dropped to -7 degrees Celsius. Wind gusts reached speeds of up to 90 kilometers per hour. Due to changing weather conditions, TOPR rescuers raised the avalanche danger level to the second, moderate level.

The higher parts of the Tatra Mountains have difficult conditions for tourism. As the services of the Tatra National Park (TPN) reported on Saturday, a layer of fresh snow appeared on the trails, with a frozen layer underneath. There is also a layer of fresh snow several centimeters thick in the montane areas. Particular attention should be paid to patches of icy snow, especially on a steep slope, where slipping may result in a dangerous fall.

– An additional difficulty is the low cloud ceiling and fog, which, combined with snowfall, significantly reduce visibility, which may lead to getting lost – said the TPN authorities.

GOPR rescuers from the Beskidzka Group reported on Saturday that the conditions on the Beskid tourist trails are difficult. It was completely cloudy on Saturday morning. It was snowing in the morning in Markowe Szczawiny, Hala Miziowa and Klimczok. Thermometers in the Beskid Mountains at 8 o'clock showed from -2 degrees in Markowe Szczawiny and -1 in Hala Miziowa, through 0 degrees C in Klimczok and 1 degree C in Leskowiec, to 3 degrees C in Szczyrk and 5 degrees in Wisła.

– It's wet on the Beskid trails. It rains from time to time. There may even be sleet. This won't bother well-prepared tourists, but we would advise them to be more careful because the trails will be slippery. Conditions in the Beskids can change in just a few minutes, so you should be prepared even if they become wintry – said the rescuer on duty of the Beskidzka Group GOPR in Szczyrk. – In the highest parts of the mountains, snow can still be found in patches. There, tourists will walk not only on rocks or slippery ground, but also on it.

Negative temperatures, fog and slippery trails in many places – these are the weather conditions prevailing in the Karkonosze Mountains on Saturday. On Saturday, in the top parts of the mountains, the temperature will range from -4 degrees Celsius to zero. The wind from the north-west may reach a speed of 40 km/h. Mountain hiking may be difficult due to fog limiting visibility to 30 meters.

There is still snow in patches in the Karkonosze Mountains. The trails are slippery in many places, and the rescuers of the Karkonosze GOPR Group recommended using grips and trekking poles.