A snowy field with trees and buildings in the background

A snowy forest with trees and bushes covered in snow

A car is covered in snow and has a license plate that says tct

A statue in front of a building that says terrasse

Chamonix Snow Report: 14th November 2007

featured in Snow report Author Helen McGrory, Chamonix Reporter Updated 26 May 2016

You may have already received our dump alert this morning (if not, register here for the next one!) so you probably know that we have had a shed load of snow overnight. So much, in fact, that it definitely warrants an update to the snow report.

At midnight last night there was already about 10cms settled on the ground and it was still falling fast. This morning, the snow plough cleared a good 30cms from the roads and pavements and it has been hard at work all day as the snow hasn't shown any sign of letting up. All in all we must have had in the region of 2 foot of snow in the last 24 hours, and that's at 1000m, the slopes themselves must have been deluged.

As there are currently no lifts open in the valley, we haven't been able to check out the ski area ourselves, although I've already seen two skiers in the middle of town who have obviously been hiking up and getting some cheeky turns in on Planards. The snow that's fallen is that fabulously light and fluffy stuff that powder days are made of – it's so frustrating not to be able to get out in it! I can however, confirm that it rates highly in terms of snowballs/men/angels and I've fallen over twice already today, so it gets a good slip rating too!

From this Saturday (17th), the Flegere cable car will be open at the weekend until December 9th (when hopefully it will open fully for the season). It's not open for skiing though, so none of the other lifts will be running, but I'm sure many people will take the opportunity to get a few warm up runs in and then hike back up. The Montenvers is also open again after its interseason break, so there are a couple of escape routes available from the valley floor.

I went out and about earlier to get some pictures of the town for you so that you can see for yourselves what I'm talking about. This has to be one of the most promising starts to the season that we have had for many years and I would be pretty confident that this snowfall will set us up with a great base for the whole winter.

Useful Information
Cross-country skiing is Closed
Piste Maps for Chamonix (pdf format), Les Houches (jpg format), Cross-country skiing (pdf format), and Mountain-bike trails (pdf format)
Current status for opening of Pistes & Lifts
Chamonix Webcam Index

We will be keeping this Chamonix snow report updated often during the season, but if you want even more up-to-date news on the ski conditions, why not sign up for our Dump Alert? We'll email you each time it snows enough to significantly change the skiing conditions. It's great to know that the snow is falling in the run-up to your holiday, and it might even allow you to book a last-minute weekend when the snow is particularly good. The service is free, and you can unsubscribe whenever you like.

Useful Links
Swiss Federal Institute for Snow and Avalanche Research
French Avalanche Research Institute
Meteo France - Mountain weather and avalanche conditions bulletins (in French)
Henry's Avalanche Talk - popular avalanche training sessions based in French Alps as well as translation of current avalanche conditions
PisteHors.com - Backcountry Skiing and Snowboarding News in English for the French Alps. Excellent coverage of avalanche safety and advice

Additional snow and weather information provided, with thanks, by meteo.chamonix.com and the Tourist Office