Wurtenkees glacier breaks into fragments as ski season approaches

The Wurtenkees glacier on the Carinthian side of the Schareck mountain has broken into several sections after summer heat and has received no fresh snow, ORF reports. The ski season is due to begin soon on the mountain near Bad Gastein, while experts warn that changing conditions are creating new dangers for people in the mountains.

Just a few years ago, the southern side of the 3,122-metre Schareck was suitable for skiing at this time of year. The ski area, known as the Moelltaler Glacier, has played a role in tourism in the Gastein Valley for decades. Shuttle services connect it through the Tauernschleuse, and freeriders use the descent to Sportgastein in winter.

Glacier researcher Andrea Fischer of the Austrian Academy of Sciences said the Wurtenkees had been disappearing particularly quickly for years, making it a textbook example of glacier loss. Nearby glaciers, including the Grosse Goldbergkees and Kleinfleisskees near the Rauris Sonnblick, are also in decline. Fischer said this was leaving the Hohe Tauern National Park with few glaciers suitable for long-term monitoring. Only measurement records from the Venedigerkees and Mullwitzkees, on the Grossvenediger, would remain, she said.

Salzburg state geologist Gerald Valentin, a certified mountain and ski guide, said a rock step had become impossible to cross on a direct ski route down from the Schareck summit. An eastern route still passes it. He said thawing permafrost beneath rocky and gravelly ground was also causing debris to cover parts of the ice. The remaining patches could persist for several years because of the uneven terrain, leaving a stepped landscape.

Fischer said mountain activities were becoming more dangerous from year to year and advised people to avoid mountain tours in light of the new hazards.