Snowy Mountains · backcountry conditions

A data board, not a verdict. Every value carries its source — you make the call.

Generated Fri 21 Aug 2026, 09:00 (local)

Official avalanche hazard — human-required

This dashboard never computes or restates an avalanche danger rating. Read the Mountain Safety Collective report before entering backcountry terrain.

Main Range report 2026-08-21 (today)
Dividing Range: report 2026-08-21 (today)

MSC report →

Measured now — alpine AWS

OBS

BOM station observations, never blended with the forecast. Arrows: change vs the same station ~3 h ago (measured, no model). No sensor sits on the Main Range itself. Station names link to BOM's own obs pages.

Overnight at Thredbo Top Station: min -0.8° at 04:20 · refroze after yesterday's thaw — expect firm/icy early

Thredbo Top Station 1957 m

10 min ago

-0.7° ▼0.3°/3h feels -14° · 61 NW (78 g) km/h ▼6/3h · 95% RH · 32.4 mm since 9am

Perisher Valley 1738 m

10 min ago

1.9° ▲0.7°/3h feels -4° · 20 W (37 g) km/h ▼17/3h · 82% RH · 22.2 mm since 9am

Cabramurra 1482 m

10 min ago

3.0° →0.0°/3h feels -3° · 24 W (43 g) km/h ▼11/3h · 100% RH · 6.6 mm since 9am

Thredbo Village 1380 m · Non-AWS

24 h ago

6.9° feels 5° · 6 S (? g) km/h · 88% RH · 21.0 mm since 9am

Base depth — Spencers Creek snow course (1830 m)

Canonical AU base-depth record (manual, ~weekly). No machine-readable value — open the chart. Measured below the ridge; there is no depth sensor on the Main Range itself.

chart →

Live wind map

animated · wind

Map by Windy.com · drag/zoom to explore; the marker sits on the Main Range.

Blue Lake

freezing 1860–1980 m

freezing level 1860–1980 m · 0.00 m base · derived flags: poor visibility / whiteout (high)

✓ models agree (best-match + ICON)

1890 m · loads NE · board for 2026-08-21 · 06:00-18:00 local

hour temp chill wind dir gust vis cloud precip snow frz.lvl
06:00 -4° 13 WNW 48 0.1k 100 0.1 0.0 1880
07:00 -4° 13 WNW 42 0.1k 100 0.1 0.0 1880
08:00 -4° 14 WNW 43 0.2k 100 0.1 0.0 1860
09:00 -4° 12 WNW 41 0.2k 99 0.0 0.0 1880
10:00 -3° 11 WNW 37 0.5k 99 0.1 0.0 1890
11:00 -2° 10 WNW 35 1.6k 63 0.3 0.0 1910
12:00 -2° 11 WNW 35 4.9k 73 0.4 0.0 1910
13:00 -2° 12 WNW 35 9.8k 88 0.3 0.0 1940
14:00 -2° 11 WNW 34 11.0k 84 0.3 0.0 1970
15:00 -2° 12 WNW 34 12.3k 64 0.2 0.0 1980
16:00 -2° 11 W 34 11.9k 88 0.2 0.0 1980
17:00 -3° 10 WNW 30 14.5k 98 0.2 0.0 1960
18:00 -4° 9 WNW 28 0.1k 98 0.1 0.0 1900

▲ poor visibility / whiteout — high severity

poor — visibility 80 m (<1 km) — navigation + terrain assessment hard; whiteout is a leading AU rescue cause. Carry a compass/GPS bearing plan and known bail lines.

derived weather signals, NOT an official avalanche forecast

Source: open-meteo/best-match · fetched 0 min ago · forecast (FCST), not measured. Check it: raw forecast · raw ICON · Windy here

Charlotte Pass

freezing 1860–1980 m

freezing level 1860–1980 m · 0.01 m base · derived flags: poor visibility / whiteout, wet-loose warming (high)

✓ models agree (best-match + ICON)

1760 m · loads NE · board for 2026-08-21 · 06:00-18:00 local

hour temp chill wind dir gust vis cloud precip snow frz.lvl
06:00 -4° 9 WNW 38 0.2k 100 0.0 0.0 1880
07:00 -3° 8 WNW 31 0.1k 100 0.0 0.0 1880
08:00 -3° 12 WNW 32 0.1k 100 0.0 0.0 1860
09:00 -3° 12 WNW 34 0.3k 100 0.0 0.0 1880
10:00 -2° 12 WNW 35 3.0k 99 0.0 0.0 1890
11:00 11 WNW 35 15.3k 84 0.1 0.0 1910
12:00 11 WNW 34 13.2k 97 0.1 0.0 1910
13:00 11 WNW 34 13.9k 100 0.1 0.0 1940
14:00 11 WNW 33 13.5k 100 0.1 0.0 1970
15:00 11 WNW 32 22.5k 98 0.1 0.0 1980
16:00 -1° 11 WNW 31 26.8k 98 0.0 0.0 1980
17:00 -2° 11 WNW 30 29.1k 96 0.0 0.0 1960
18:00 -4° 10 WNW 28 0.3k 100 0.0 0.0 1900

▲ poor visibility / whiteout — high severity

poor — visibility 140 m (<1 km) — navigation + terrain assessment hard; whiteout is a leading AU rescue cause. Carry a compass/GPS bearing plan and known bail lines.

▲ wet-loose warming — watch severity

warming -0.1→3.9 °C through the day — wet-loose / point-release on sun-warmed N/NW/W aspects. Tour early, be off steep solar slopes by early afternoon.

derived weather signals, NOT an official avalanche forecast

Source: open-meteo/best-match · fetched 0 min ago · forecast (FCST), not measured. Check it: raw forecast · raw ICON · Windy here

Dead Horse Gap / Rams Head

freezing 1880–1980 m

freezing level 1880–1980 m · 0.00 m base · derived flags: poor visibility / whiteout, wet-loose warming (high)

⚠ models diverge: temp 4.6 vs 1.5 °C (best-match vs ICON) — trust those numbers less

1580 m · loads SE · board for 2026-08-21 · 06:00-18:00 local

hour temp chill wind dir gust vis cloud precip snow frz.lvl
06:00 -4° 15 NW 47 0.2k 100 0.0 0.0 1930
07:00 -3° 13 NW 39 0.2k 100 0.0 0.0 1880
08:00 -3° 17 NW 41 0.1k 100 0.0 0.0 1880
09:00 -3° 16 WNW 43 0.3k 100 0.0 0.0 1890
10:00 -2° 16 WNW 45 2.8k 100 0.0 0.0 1890
11:00 15 NW 44 5.7k 87 0.0 0.0 1910
12:00 14 NW 42 16.0k 77 0.0 0.0 1920
13:00 14 NW 41 14.4k 100 0.1 0.0 1950
14:00 14 NW 40 12.6k 100 0.1 0.0 1980
15:00 13 NW 39 20.1k 95 0.1 0.0 1970
16:00 -1° 13 NW 38 25.3k 100 0.0 0.0 1970
17:00 -2° 13 NW 36 27.7k 100 0.0 0.0 1940
18:00 -3° 12 NW 35 0.3k 100 0.0 0.0 1910

▲ poor visibility / whiteout — high severity

poor — visibility 140 m (<1 km) — navigation + terrain assessment hard; whiteout is a leading AU rescue cause. Carry a compass/GPS bearing plan and known bail lines.

▲ wet-loose warming — watch severity

warming 0.6→4.6 °C through the day — wet-loose / point-release on sun-warmed N/NW/W aspects. Tour early, be off steep solar slopes by early afternoon.

derived weather signals, NOT an official avalanche forecast

Source: open-meteo/best-match · fetched 0 min ago · forecast (FCST), not measured. Check it: raw forecast · raw ICON · Windy here

Guthega access

freezing 1860–1980 m

freezing level 1860–1980 m · 0.00 m base · derived flags: poor visibility / whiteout, wet-loose warming (high)

⚠ models diverge: cloud 48 vs 96%, temp 5.4 vs 1.9 °C (best-match vs ICON) — trust those numbers less

1640 m · loads NE · board for 2026-08-21 · 06:00-18:00 local

hour temp chill wind dir gust vis cloud precip snow frz.lvl
06:00 -2° 12 WSW 47 0.2k 100 0.0 0.0 1880
07:00 -2° 10 WSW 39 0.1k 100 0.1 0.0 1880
08:00 -2° 13 W 38 0.2k 100 0.1 0.0 1860
09:00 -2° 12 W 38 0.3k 100 0.0 0.0 1880
10:00 13 W 40 10.8k 100 0.0 0.0 1890
11:00 12 W 40 11.0k 51 0.1 0.0 1910
12:00 14 W 43 10.4k 48 0.1 0.0 1910
13:00 15 W 46 15.4k 100 0.1 0.0 1940
14:00 14 W 44 17.3k 98 0.1 0.0 1970
15:00 14 W 42 18.7k 56 0.0 0.0 1980
16:00 13 W 41 21.7k 68 0.0 0.0 1980
17:00 -1° 10 WNW 37 28.9k 77 0.0 0.0 1960
18:00 -2° 9 W 30 0.3k 84 0.0 0.0 1900

▲ poor visibility / whiteout — high severity

poor — visibility 140 m (<1 km) — navigation + terrain assessment hard; whiteout is a leading AU rescue cause. Carry a compass/GPS bearing plan and known bail lines.

▲ wet-loose warming — high severity

warming 1.4→5.4 °C through the day — wet-loose / point-release on sun-warmed N/NW/W aspects. Tour early, be off steep solar slopes by early afternoon.

derived weather signals, NOT an official avalanche forecast

Source: open-meteo/best-match · fetched 0 min ago · forecast (FCST), not measured. Check it: raw forecast · raw ICON · Windy here

Main Range (Kosciuszko)

freezing 1880–1980 m

freezing level 1880–1980 m · 0.00 m base · derived flags: poor visibility / whiteout (high)

✓ models agree (best-match + ICON)

2228 m · loads E · board for 2026-08-21 · 06:00-18:00 local

hour temp chill wind dir gust vis cloud precip snow frz.lvl
06:00 -3° -7° 12 NW 50 0.1k 100 0.0 0.0 1930
07:00 -2° -6° 11 NW 46 0.1k 100 0.1 0.0 1880
08:00 -2° -6° 12 NW 45 0.2k 100 0.1 0.0 1880
09:00 -2° -6° 10 NW 42 0.3k 100 0.1 0.0 1890
10:00 -2° -6° 10 NW 38 0.7k 97 0.1 0.0 1890
11:00 -4° 10 NW 38 1.8k 84 0.2 0.0 1910
12:00 -4° 11 NW 38 6.3k 85 0.3 0.0 1920
13:00 -4° 10 NW 38 7.8k 86 0.4 0.0 1950
14:00 -4° 10 NW 37 8.1k 88 0.4 0.0 1980
15:00 -4° 10 NW 36 12.4k 77 0.3 0.0 1970
16:00 -1° -5° 10 NW 35 12.3k 91 0.2 0.0 1970
17:00 -2° -6° 10 NW 34 13.3k 97 0.2 0.0 1940
18:00 -2° -6° 9 NW 34 0.1k 99 0.1 0.0 1910

▲ poor visibility / whiteout — high severity

poor — visibility 100 m (<1 km) — navigation + terrain assessment hard; whiteout is a leading AU rescue cause. Carry a compass/GPS bearing plan and known bail lines.

derived weather signals, NOT an official avalanche forecast

Source: open-meteo/best-match · fetched 0 min ago · forecast (FCST), not measured. Check it: raw forecast · raw ICON · Windy here

Perisher access

freezing 1860–1980 m

freezing level 1860–1980 m · 0.00 m base · derived flags: poor visibility / whiteout, wet-loose warming (high)

⚠ models diverge: cloud 48 vs 96%, temp 5.4 vs 1.9 °C (best-match vs ICON) — trust those numbers less

1720 m · loads E · board for 2026-08-21 · 06:00-18:00 local

hour temp chill wind dir gust vis cloud precip snow frz.lvl
06:00 -2° 12 WSW 47 0.2k 100 0.0 0.0 1880
07:00 -2° 10 WSW 39 0.1k 100 0.1 0.0 1880
08:00 -2° 13 W 38 0.2k 100 0.1 0.0 1860
09:00 -2° 12 W 38 0.3k 100 0.0 0.0 1880
10:00 13 W 40 10.8k 100 0.0 0.0 1890
11:00 12 W 40 11.0k 51 0.1 0.0 1910
12:00 14 W 43 10.4k 48 0.1 0.0 1910
13:00 15 W 46 15.4k 100 0.1 0.0 1940
14:00 14 W 44 17.3k 98 0.1 0.0 1970
15:00 14 W 42 18.7k 56 0.0 0.0 1980
16:00 13 W 41 21.7k 68 0.0 0.0 1980
17:00 -1° 10 WNW 37 28.9k 77 0.0 0.0 1960
18:00 -2° 9 W 30 0.3k 84 0.0 0.0 1900

▲ poor visibility / whiteout — high severity

poor — visibility 140 m (<1 km) — navigation + terrain assessment hard; whiteout is a leading AU rescue cause. Carry a compass/GPS bearing plan and known bail lines.

▲ wet-loose warming — high severity

warming 1.4→5.4 °C through the day — wet-loose / point-release on sun-warmed N/NW/W aspects. Tour early, be off steep solar slopes by early afternoon.

derived weather signals, NOT an official avalanche forecast

Source: open-meteo/best-match · fetched 0 min ago · forecast (FCST), not measured. Check it: raw forecast · raw ICON · Windy here

Watsons Crags

freezing 1770–1900 m

freezing level 1770–1900 m · 0.00 m base · derived flags: poor visibility / whiteout, icy surface (melt-freeze) (high)

✓ models agree (best-match + ICON)

2100 m · loads E · board for 2026-08-21 · 06:00-18:00 local

hour temp chill wind dir gust vis cloud precip snow frz.lvl
06:00 -1° -5° 12 NW 50 0.1k 100 0.0 0.0 1790
07:00 -1° -5° 11 NW 46 0.1k 100 0.1 0.0 1780
08:00 -5° 12 NW 45 0.2k 100 0.1 0.0 1770
09:00 -1° -5° 10 NW 42 0.3k 100 0.1 0.0 1780
10:00 -4° 10 NW 38 0.7k 97 0.1 0.0 1790
11:00 -3° 10 NW 38 1.8k 84 0.2 0.0 1790
12:00 -2° 11 NW 38 6.3k 85 0.3 0.0 1820
13:00 -2° 10 NW 38 7.8k 86 0.4 0.0 1850
14:00 -3° 10 NW 37 8.1k 88 0.4 0.0 1870
15:00 -3° 10 NW 36 12.4k 77 0.3 0.0 1900
16:00 -3° 10 NW 35 12.3k 91 0.2 0.0 1890
17:00 -4° 10 NW 34 13.3k 97 0.2 0.0 1870
18:00 -1° -4° 9 NW 34 0.1k 99 0.1 0.0 1820

▲ poor visibility / whiteout — high severity

poor — visibility 100 m (<1 km) — navigation + terrain assessment hard; whiteout is a leading AU rescue cause. Carry a compass/GPS bearing plan and known bail lines.

▲ icy surface (melt-freeze) — watch severity

melt-freeze: 1.3 °C at 11:00 then -0.9 °C at 18:00 — expect bulletproof/rime crust. Crampons + ice axe; firm slips are a top AU injury cause.

derived weather signals, NOT an official avalanche forecast

Source: open-meteo/best-match · fetched 0 min ago · forecast (FCST), not measured. Check it: raw forecast · raw ICON · Windy here

Western Faces

freezing 1880–1980 m

freezing level 1880–1980 m · 0.00 m base · derived flags: poor visibility / whiteout, icy surface (melt-freeze) (high)

✓ models agree (best-match + ICON)

2050 m · loads E · board for 2026-08-21 · 06:00-18:00 local

hour temp chill wind dir gust vis cloud precip snow frz.lvl
06:00 -1° -5° 12 NW 50 0.1k 100 0.0 0.0 1930
07:00 -4° 11 NW 46 0.1k 100 0.1 0.0 1880
08:00 -4° 12 NW 45 0.2k 100 0.1 0.0 1880
09:00 -4° 10 NW 42 0.3k 100 0.1 0.0 1890
10:00 -3° 10 NW 38 0.7k 97 0.1 0.0 1890
11:00 -2° 10 NW 38 1.8k 84 0.2 0.0 1910
12:00 -2° 11 NW 38 6.3k 85 0.3 0.0 1920
13:00 -2° 10 NW 38 7.8k 86 0.4 0.0 1950
14:00 -2° 10 NW 37 8.1k 88 0.4 0.0 1980
15:00 -2° 10 NW 36 12.4k 77 0.3 0.0 1970
16:00 -3° 10 NW 35 12.3k 91 0.2 0.0 1970
17:00 -4° 10 NW 34 13.3k 97 0.2 0.0 1940
18:00 -1° -4° 9 NW 34 0.1k 99 0.1 0.0 1910

▲ poor visibility / whiteout — high severity

poor — visibility 100 m (<1 km) — navigation + terrain assessment hard; whiteout is a leading AU rescue cause. Carry a compass/GPS bearing plan and known bail lines.

▲ icy surface (melt-freeze) — watch severity

melt-freeze: 1.6 °C at 11:00 then -0.6 °C at 18:00 — expect bulletproof/rime crust. Crampons + ice axe; firm slips are a top AU injury cause.

derived weather signals, NOT an official avalanche forecast

Source: open-meteo/best-match · fetched 0 min ago · forecast (FCST), not measured. Check it: raw forecast · raw ICON · Windy here

Cams

Perisher Valley

Community webcam (valley) · Webcam provided by Windy.com

Trailhead access

Road and park status change fast in the alpine — open these before you drive. Chain-fit and snow closures apply to Kosciuszko Rd and the Alpine Way in winter.

Road status: Transport for NSW Live Traffic (CC BY 4.0) · fetched 0 min ago

Daily reads — the humans who watch this mountain

human-authored sources — names, links and post dates only, never their content

Before you go

The morning read ends with the safety net, not just the weather. Chains must be carried in Kosciuszko NP in winter (4WD/AWD exempt); Kosciuszko Rd is closed Perisher→Charlotte Pass (oversnow only). The full pre-trip checklist lives in the repo (docs/FIELD-NOTES.md).

Source health

1 source(s) stale or unavailable

When each input last updated and whether this build reached it. link = human-required source we point to, never parse.