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Chamonix Snow Report: 25th February 2009

featured in Snow report Author Tom Wilson-North, Updated

The sun is getting higher in the sky every day; spring is sprung. The air temperature is cold in the daytime, but the sunshine is becoming stronger and stronger every day. The snow accumulations lining the road from Montroc to Servoz are becoming smaller every day; the white blanket is turning into more of a sheet. Meltwater from the dripping drifts is running in little streams down the road, mixing with the oil, mud and grit on the tarmac and being sprayed back onto the side by passing cars. The roads are lined with banks of brown-grey snow, a reminder of falls gone by, of cars dug out and powder days had.

Despite that brown gloopy slushy stuff, Spring is still my favourite time of the year. The birds are back - doing their best impression of low-battery mobiles when they bleep from the treetops at 8.30am - and I even saw a fly buzzing around at 1500m at Le Tour the other day. If that's not a sign of things warming up, I don't know what is.

I've ridden eleven days out of the last twelve so took a break today to catch up; my other half insisted I wash at least my underwear, and for once let my gloves dry out fully. I went to the back, did some shopping, even caught Slumdog Millionaire at it's Chamonix premiere at the cinema (and yes, it's brilliant, deserves an Oscar or eight). But enough of the valley stuff; let's talk about the snow, now you're worried it's all melting.

Melting, well yes...fast, well no. Anything that's not in direct sunny aspect (and therefore escapes the ice-creating cycle of daytime melting and nighttime refreezing) is in great condition. That means ticks go in the boxes of Grands Montets, the back of Le Tour, and the front of Les Houches. Brevent & Flégère are suffering ever so slightly, with both homeruns being in fair to poor condition (think very sticky snow strewn with pebbles and the occassional fist-sized boulder). They're open, though; and perfectly skiable ...so long as your skis are rented.

Getting the train to Vallorcine and skiing the back of Le Tour is rapidly becoming one of my favourite days out; whilst there earlier this week, we headed to one of our favourite slackcountry spots, the bowls out the back. The gullies were in brilliant condition; soft and not too tracked, whilst the traverse back out was mellow and avoided the worst of the bushes. A run in hand, we took a couple of laps of the Tete de Balme chair on the red runs, enjoying the soft untracked pistes and magnificent views over the Emosson Dam. I must admit I nearly choked after a ten minute chat with Granny back in the UK; my phone had locked on to the Swiss network and I'll have been stung for the roaming charges. Check the network before you dial!

The frontside of the mountain, around the Chavannes chairlift in particular, was woefully busy and worth avoiding. So much so, in fact, rather than wait for the chairlift queue we elected to ski the homerun to the gondola bottom and bus it to Les Grands Montets. Grands was cool...the four-man chair looked like a shop window with everybody rocking brand-new jackets, bright pants, this-year's gear and enormous goggles with the straps tucked inside their helmets. The park itself was intimidatingly huge, as normal, although there are a couple of nice-shaped green-grade ramps and whoops which are great for learning tricks and getting used to being up in the air. The Bochard trail was excellent, although slightly icey-in-the-middle, deep-tracked-powder-piles-at-the-sides on the steep parts.

Before I leave you, let me fill you in on the best story I heard this week. Below the hair salon in town is a beauty therapists that also offers tanning. The most unusual client this week? A teenage Russian girl, for a solarium. Nothing unusual in that...although this one brought a pair of ski goggles with her, for that just-off-the-mountain goggle tan, hers for a couple of euros, at the touch of a button. Viva Cham!


Tom

Stats

Avalanche Risk
  • Level 2

Snow Report
  • 0

  • Total Pistes: 75

  • Alt. Resort: 1972

  • Alt. Summit: 3233

  • Alt. Last Snow: 2800

  • High Temp.: 3

  • Alt. High Temp.: 1050