Chamonix Snow Report: 22nd January 2005
Be careful what you wish for as it may come true. The past few days in Chamonix it just hasn't stopped snowing bringing some of the lifts to a standstill. This has been mainly because of the strong winds on the higher parts of the mountain, with visibility up there down to nothing in the blizzard conditions. The powder's certainly starting to pile up, with the valley echoing to the booms of the avalanche bombing with some substantial sounding rumbles after the initial explosions. The avalanche hazard at the moment is very high at 4 with off piste skiing and boarding very dangerous.
Yesterday, we headed first to Le Tour at the end of the valley. This wasn't a good decision to make in a snowstorm. Only the lifts at the front were open and the visibility at the top of the Autannes chair was next to nothing. When it's like that, you don't know which way is up or down or whether you are moving or stationary; not a pleasant experience even with fresh snow. We decided instead to head down straight away and try Grands Montets. It's better in very snowy conditions because of the tree cover on its lower slopes that breaks up the cloud and improves visibility. We rode the bottom of the Lavancher bowl, which now has some good snow; the small trees and bushes improved the visibility too. Some of the higher lifts were open at Grands Montets yesterday but with the visibility as it was and after our experience at Le Tour we didn't think it would be a fantastic idea to use them. Instead we stuck to the lower chairs, Plan Roujon and Retour Pendant. Pierre a Ric was in good condition although it was a bit choppy and bumpy with the snow fairly wet and heavy, making it hard work on the legs. My feet hurt at the bottom of the run; the new pair of boots I was using didn't help things.
Today we woke to more heavy snow, the flakes large and feathery. The high tech snow meter in our garden (a ski pole) read nearly 60cm, an increase of 15cm overnight but the lift company are claiming 50cm of fresh powder at Grands Montets this morning. The snow down here in town is very wet and heavy, with the roads covered in a slippery layer of slush. The temperature has been hovering around 0°c for most of the day and it feels quite mild. The higher lifts are still closed and the roads up the valley from Chamonix are poor to drive on. I drove up to Argentiere this morning and at Les Praz, next to the Flegere lift station, the police were stopping cars and making them put chains on if they wanted to go further; there are also quite a few buried cars at the road side once you get past the tunnel. There's been more snow up in Argentiere, a friend's car had about 70cm of snow on it, not much fun to dig out! The Grands Montets car park was fairly empty, with not a lot of people skiing today including myself as I headed straight back down to Chamonix. I didn't want to get stuck up in Argentiere in the snow, and the prospect of boarding in a whiteout was not appealing. It's still snowing here as I write this with more snow due tonight. Tomorrow it's due to ease up with the sun making an appearance so it could be the best day of the season yet.
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
Additional snow and weather information provided, with thanks, by meteo.chamonix.com and the Tourist Office
Stats
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Level 4
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0
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Total Pistes: 80
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Alt. Resort: 2000
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Alt. Summit: 3000
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Alt. Last Snow: 1042
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High Temp.: 1
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Alt. High Temp.: 1042
