Chamonix Snow Report: 28th January 2007

We would have expected the resort to be a little busier than it was this weekend, with the weather being so good, but queues at the lifts have been pretty minimal. The worst wait we had today was, predictably, for the cable car to Flegere from Les Praz, but once we were up, it was deserted on the pistes. One advantage of getting up on the mountain early is being first on the corduroy. Flegere was well groomed this morning with the snow smooth and soft for laying down some thinly carved lines. It stayed hard without being icy until about midday, after which time, especially on the lower runs like Liaison, it turned very soft. The lower sections around the Liaison and the very bottom of Combe Lachenal were a little thin in places with loose stones and a few rocks coming through.

It was sunny at the top of the Floria draglift, and there was some superb snow there. We noticed that a few skinning trails have started to go in: one over the Col des Crochues and another around to Lac Blanc. I assume that means that the snow in the Berard valley is now good enough for skiing down to Le Buet. The black run, Floria, was well groomed and thankfully mogul and ice free; where it joins the red run Crochues it is wide and very fast with great snow cover. The only disappointment is that the lower part of the run is still closed due to insufficient snow, so instead the run cuts back below the Chavannes chairlift. The beginners' runs below the Trappe were still in good shape too.

The top of Combe Lachenal was very good and the snow was firm but not too icy. There have been some very large avalanches in Combe Lachenal with debris strewn over large sections of the bowl. Thankfully the piste bashers have made a good job of smoothing out the pisted area; I wouldn't recommend trying to ski through the debris until there's been a fairly sizable snowfall to cover it.

Brevent is in good shape too, with the upper parts of Cornu particularly good. Although some of the sunnier, lower pistes are a little stony now. The Charlanon bowl was good today too; and being a little shadier than Cornu it didn't have any thin sections at all. The off piste is starting to resemble the piste in most places now. The wind seems to have blown the loose snow away and it's been well tracked in the easily accessed areas, leaving it fairly packed.

We've been out on the ski de fond trails in Chamonix too, and they are in reasonably good condition but do have a few thin patches here and there. The snow that's on the ground in the valley is made up solely from the last snow fall. It is only about 20cm deep so a few rocks are poking through and there are some muddy patches. The snow today was noticeably less good than yesterday. Another snowfall in the next few days would be quite useful, however I don't think it's likely that we'll get one if the forecast is to be believed.

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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