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Chamonix Snow Report: 21st February 2008

featured in Snow report Author Jim Brady, Updated

As we went to bed last night it was snowing, not a lot, but it was snowing. Regular readers of the snow reports especially local ones, may have gleaned I don't normally get too excited about a couple of centimetres of fresh snow, indeed it might not even feature it in the “Last Snowfall” box above, but when it's the first snow for over two weeks and seems to be a portent of a more significant change in the weather it is defiantly worth a mention.

The massive base that was put down before Christmas and the regular top ups we have enjoyed since, has meant that the recent drought, if indeed 16 days without snow qualifies as a drought, plus the impact of the half term crowds has been borne quite well by the snow on the pistes. While many pistes are getting hard, and the surface snow disappearing, many others are still holding up remarkably well. Low lying, south facing runs have faired worse and are becoming soft and heavy even sticky late in the day, also on narrow steep sections the loose surface snow has been swept aside to reveal the hardpack below. Despite this there is still plenty of good snow about, especially higher up and on shadier aspects. The south facing pistes at Brevent are especially hard and seem to have suffered from repeated freeze thaw cycles.

We have had visitors again this passed week including a couple of complete beginners so have been spending a lot of time at Le Tour. If you are coming out next week and have novice boarders or skiers with you I would strongly recommend this area. The nursery slopes at Vormaine are at 1500m and enjoy both the best snow of any of the beginner's areas plus also the best of any sunny weather that is going. In common with the other nursery areas in the valley a cheap day ticket is available for the three learner friendly button lifts here.

When your group feels ready for bigger things then Le Tour is also the perfect place to continue your progression. I can confirm that right now both the nursery area and most of the pistes here are still in good condition. There were even some lines to be had this morning for a couple of hours, all be it in just an inch of fresh.

The avalanche threat level of 1, low, says it all as far as the off piste conditions are concerned. It's not great! All the side piste has been flattened and compacted by the passage of riders and skiers, and much of it rides like the piste. There are some interesting mogul fields about, if you like that sort of thing. Some friends have reported good sport high up on Grands Montets again altitude and aspect seem to be the key to the better conditions.

The short term forecast is for a couple more fine days followed by a rain/snow belt on Monday.

Check out what to do around town once the lifts have closed with our latest Apres Ski Report - a weekly round up of what's hot and where to party in Chamonix!

Useful Information
Cross-country skiing is Open
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

Stats

Avalanche Risk
  • Level 1

Snow Report
  • 0

  • Total Pistes: 75

  • Alt. Resort: 2000

  • Alt. Summit: 2700

  • Alt. Last Snow: 2700

  • High Temp.: 4

  • Alt. High Temp.: 1050