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Chamonix Snow Report: 3rd March 2005

featured in Snow report Author Ellie Mahoney, Chamonix Editor Updated

Yesterday's weather forecast promised us cloudy skies and 5 cm of snow today, but this morning dawned bright and clear. There's nothing like a warm, sunny day mid-season (+5 °C at the house as I write) to make you want to laze about and drink beer on the balcony at home, so I (a substitute snow reporter, as your usual one is off sick today) was late getting out today. I arrived at Grand Montets at a quarter to two and took the Plan Joran chair up. The first thing that struck me was that it was relatively mild up there, shortly followed by the fact that it was extremely quiet. We seem to have seen the last of the half-term crowds (unless of course they had simply gone somewhere else today!).

First of all I took a ride up La Herse. The chair was practically deserted and I walked straight on. I turned left at the top and took Blanchots down – a black marked but unbashed run that intersects with Point de Vue just above the Chalet Refuge to return to Lognan. The promised cloud had begun to roll in and it was snowing very lightly so the light came and went a bit but on the whole the run was good fun. After the initial flat(-ish) section, it becomes much steeper and it is, of course, at this point that the moguls appear. (Last year a friend of ours chose this run as one of the first he tried when learning to snowboard – he travelled about 200 metres on his back head-first and I'm not sure he's been on a board since!) However, the snow everywhere off the Herse is unexpectedly soft, so the bumps were actually quite entertaining today. I liked it so much I went straight back up the chair and rode the red Combes run down to where it meets Pylones. This lower section of the Pylones (the clue is in the name) has the disadvantage of being right under the chair so everyone riding up can witness any technical difficulties you may experience whilst negotiating the monstrous and tightly packed moguls that have sprouted there. It is also littered with yellow and black warning poles, which mark the rocks that are beginning to poke through. Definitely a run to attempt only when you feel like you need a challenge (or perhaps some punishment); Combes is much nicer at the moment.

Next I took the Bochard gondola up (very short queue) and rode the black Chamois run down into Combe de la Pendant. The snow is much harder over this side – the bullet-proof stuff we have come to expect over the last week or so. I was amazed that I actually managed to keep an edge on the steeper sections because the last time I rode this one about a week ago I couldn't. Lower down where the run becomes blue (Arolles) there are a few stones and bare patches. As with other pistes that see most traffic (e.g., Marmottons) you need to keep your eyes peeled for the occasional ice patch scraped bare. Just before you reach the Retour Pendant lift, the very bottom section of Remuaz has been bashed, unusually. This means that there are no bumps (which would normally be a good thing) but instead there is absolutely nothing to get a grip on. Most of the people when I came down it (including me) were taking refuge in the moguls at the sides.

Given that it was so quiet at Grand Montets today, Pierre a Ric was inexplicably crowded. I find that this run is actually fun on only a handful of occasions in any given season and today was not one of those. Having said that, it wasn't too bad, with only the usual ice patches in the usual places on the first two thirds followed by some loose stuff where the run begins to flatten out.

As I write, snow is falling intermittently and very lightly at the house, and we are promised more for the weekend.

Useful Links
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.

Additional snow and weather information provided, with thanks, by meteo.chamonix.com and the Tourist Office

Stats

Avalanche Risk
  • Level 2

Snow Report
  • 0

  • Total Pistes: 80

  • Alt. Resort: 2000

  • Alt. Summit: 3000

  • Alt. Last Snow: 1042

  • High Temp.: -1

  • Alt. High Temp.: 1042