Chamonix Snow Report: 17th February 2016

So for a big ski day this week I headed back to Courmayeur with my main ski partner Graham and a couple of his friends who are visiting - a nice fast group and it was good to share some of our favourite spots to make the most of conditions.

Through to the Val Veny lift for 8.30am we headed straight to the top Youla and Arp cablecars to get a lap in before the queue got too big. Off the top of the mountain we took the traverse right to the col where a very short bootpack was in place before continuing on to the first section of the main descent. I don't think this is too exciting a pitch, just a short, straight face but the snow was a good 30cm+ and this led us to some nice lines through the gullies below all the way to the summer road with plenty of more interesting features to play on. The road itself is a good 10 minute skate out but I've never seen it as easy and fast in all my time skiing it - definitely less sweaty than usual when we reached the Zerotta lift!

Back around to the top lifts the queue had grown massively in the space of an hour. I really don't know why so many piste skiers are so keen to queue to ski the piste off Youla which is definitely not one of Courmayeur's best (pistes elsewhere on the mountain were skiing really nicely while we were accessing our routes, if a little busy). There were plenty of other off-piste options for us though so we tried the Dolonne Couloir next (skier's-right of the Checruit gondola top station). Wow, I've never seen it so tracked-out! It must have seen a lot of traffic yesterday and while it was still soft and skiable, it wasn't the usual fun descent although the exit to the Dolonne gondola was far easier than usual having seen so much traffic.

An obligatory cappuccino break followed shortly after, with the weather warm enough to enjoy it outside, then we got back on with some quick tree laps towards the Zerotta lift in some spots that we have come to know well over the last few years. Some obvious routes were tracked but not too badly, and all we had to do was move away from those lines a little to find untouched snow most of the way down, deep enough to ski nice and fast with a few airs thrown in.

It's been a while since I've had lunch in a mountain restaurant in Courmayeur but we enjoyed a good one at the bottom of Zerotta. There was pretty slow service if I'm honest, but top notch pizza and the spit roast suckling pig looked & smelled amazing - maybe next time!

In typical style we only managed one big run with full bellies after a late lunch but we made it a good one off the top lifts. The very top lift (Arp) had closed so we headed off the back straight from the Youla station instead through a wide gully that was completely untracked even at 3.30pm. We couldn't quite believe that it hadn't been skied but after all agreeing that it was safe we enjoyed some long turns down it before it narrowed and led out to the summer road just like our first run. It was a really good one to finish on and we headed home through the Mont Blanc Tunnel fully satisfied once again.

Looking ahead to next week there may be some more fresh snow at mid mountain level on Friday & Monday night. Sunday will be quite warm and sunny compared to the rest of the week.

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Ed: Anyone with an MBU ski pass can ski in Coumayeur. You will need to validate it at the ticket office on your first visit. Catch the bus from Cham Sud terminus through the Mont Blanc tunnel to get there or you can drive. Make sure you show your ski pass at the tunnel ticket desk to get a discount.

NB: Off piste skiing and mountaineering are dangerous. The opinions expressed in these articles are very much time and condition specific and the content is not intended in any way to be a substitute for hiring a mountain guide, undergoing professional mountaineering training and/or the individual's own back country decision making.