Chamonix Snow Report: 21st December 2006

The snow cannons have been hard at work at Grands Montets all week, and have been running all the way down to Argentiere on the Pierre a Ric, which is looking good for its opening this weekend. The snow cannons have also been doing a good job on the top section of Bochard, which I was complaining about in my last report. The bales of straw that were covering the rocks are now mostly buried with a few stubborn ones refusing to disappear, and the rocks on the piste are looking smaller by the day. The moguls in the top section seem to be reducing too, especially at the narrow left-hand bend.

The snow that the cannons have been making has been unusually good too, and could even pass as the real stuff if you're not too fussy. Underneath the loose artificial snow, the base is very firm and, as I discovered when I lost my edge, almost icy, so a little care is needed on the balder areas of Marmotton and Bochard. But in general the pistes that are open at Grands Montets are in good condition.

I didn't dare venture far off piste as there are still far too many rocks not covered at all and far too many only thinly covered, which is even worse. However, this doesn't seem to deter some folks here, and people doggedly go off piste no matter what the conditions are like. There are trails all over the place. Higher up on the glacier there are trails down the face from the Grands Montets, and it looks like it would have been good, deep snow free from rocks. I guess the hike up is enough to stop most people taking advantage of it, including myself. There are some large moguls developing off piste too, notably halfway down Bochard just left of the orange netting. The skier's right of the section has the smallest ones and the snow seemed a little softer there too.

This time of year Grands Montets doesn't see much sun, but by 1 or 2 pm it does get a little, which today helped to alleviate some of the icier sections of Marmotton. It was a case of stay on the right in shade and struggle to keep an edge, or head to the left into the sunny patches and find firm but compliant snow good for laying down a carved turn – much better I think. Weatherwise things don't look like changing much in the near future but at least it's going to stay cold. We've had some heavy frosts in the valley lasting all day long, and it almost looks like snow on the trees. This cold weather also means that the snow cannons will be able to continue running. At this rate I think it will be a white Christmas, but sadly, a mostly artificial one.

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