Snow update, 23rd November 2009

INTRODUCTION

The number of resorts open for snowsports continues to increase on both sides of the Atlantic.

Engelberg in Switzerland opened for the winter season on Saturday 21st November. It is currently only possible to ski on the Titlis Glacier but the snow conditions up there are great.

On the other side of the Atlantic in Canada the snow just keeps on falling at Whistler. The resort has received more than three metres of snow since the beginning of last week.

Vail in America opened for the season on Saturday. Cold weather allows them to run the snow cannons most of the time so there is good skiing available.

AUSTRIA

Most of the ski areas that are now open are glacier resorts that open for skiing over the summer but Obergurgl (26/43cm) and Obertauern (25/45cm), which do not open for skiing over the summer, are open too. Good skiing is offered at all of the open resorts but cover on the lower slopes is a little thin due to the recent mild weather.

17 lifts are running at Obergurgl which is excellent for the time of year. Only five are running at Obertauern but there is a good variety of terrain on offer.

62km of pistes are available at Hintertux (0/170cm) currently. A light dusting of snow at the end of last week helped keep conditions fresh and as a result the skiing is still very good. A temperature of -3°C on the glacier means the snow is in great condition. It is possible to ski down to 2100m so there is a good amount of skiing available.

FRANCE

Light snow fell at some of the higher French resorts this weekend. Tignes (15/50cm) and Val Thorens (35/65cm) received a few centimetres of snow on Sunday night, which helped to improve their open pistes. You can ski back down to Val Claret at Tignes using the Double M pistes. Tignes has nine lifts open while Val Thorens has only five lifts available.

Other French resorts that are scheduled to open next weekend include Val d’Isere, Les Deux Alpes and Serre Chevalier. Tignes should also be able to open more of its winter ski area this coming weekend too.

SWITZERLAND

Following three weeks of maintenance on restaurants and cable cars, Engelberg (0/45cm) has now opened for the winter season. The skiing is limited to the Titlis Glacier at the moment and three lifts are running up there, four including the main cable car from the village.

It is also possible to ski in the Davos (0/46cm) area this week. Two lifts opened on the Parsenn Mountain over the weekend but they are closed during the week. This area will reopen for the winter season daily on 27th November. The lifts on the Jakobshorn are open every day.

Weekend operations at Verbier (0/30cm) still provide some fun skiing. Mild weather recently has reduced the snow cover but the snow cannons have been running overnight. Verbier should have its official season opening on Saturday 5th December.

USA

Fresh snow has been falling in Colorado and the temperature has dropped considerably. Up to around 10cm of snow fell on some resorts over the weekend. Vail (46cm) has now opened for the winter season. Three lifts were opened on Friday giving access to three open runs. Light snow fell over the weekend which gave a nice fresh layer of snow to ski on the runs. It is cold at the moment however with daytime temperatures of around -10°C.

Park City (61cm) in Utah also opened this weekend. Two lifts were opened on Saturday with several runs accessible from each lift. As with everywhere at the moment it’s best to stick to the trails as snow cover away from the groomed runs is fairly thin.

Unfortunately it is still very warm on the east coast. The only resorts to have offered skiing so far this season are Killington (20cm) and Sunday River (15/30cm). There is currently not enough snow for them to be able to offer daily skiing, which is why they are limiting it to the weekend. As soon as the temperature drops the snow cannons will be fired up again and this should hopefully allow them to open runs during the week.

CANADA

A lot of snow has fallen on almost all of our featured resorts in Western Canada recently. Pacific storms moved over bringing more than three metres of snow in a week.

The most snow fell on Whistler (235cm) where they have recorded the snowiest November in history. To date 523cm of snow has fallen since 1st November and with more snow forecast this total is likely to rise further. The snowstorm has slowed down now but it is still snowing and is expected to do so for most of the week.

Sun Peaks (73/98cm) has also been receiving lots of snow, but nothing like as much as Whistler. 56cm of snow has fallen since Monday of last week which has allowed the resort to open all but two lifts. 66 of 122 trails are open for skiing so there is plenty of variety.

EUROPEAN WEATHER OUTLOOK

The French Alps are expecting a small snowstorm on Monday night which could bring between 10 and 15cm of snow to the slopes above 2000m. Unfortunately heights below that are likely to see rain fall. The good news is that it shouldn’t be as hot as it was last week. The freezing level should hover around 2200m for most of this week in France.

Light snow is also expected in most of Austria, although not as much snow will fall here as in France. Zurs is expecting the most snow in Austria, with 11cm expected to fall by next weekend. It should be generally colder that it has been recently but Wednesday will see a brief warm spell before getting cold again on Thursday. Friday should see 7cm of fresh snow even at low levels in the Arlberg area. The rest of Austria is expecting much the same weather, with slightly less snow.

20cm of snow is expected at Verbier in Switzerland this week. Around 10cm of this should fall on Monday night into Tuesday morning as far down as 2100m. Unfortunately heavy rain will fall in the village.

NORTH AMERICAN WEATHER OUTLOOK

Generally dry weather is expected across the whole of the USA this week. Light snow could fall on most of our featured resorts in Colorado later in the week. It should stay cold through the week in Colorado, allowing resorts to make snow most of the time, especially overnight.

Up in Oregon it is expected to get hotter this week. Temperatures of 6°C at the bottom and 2°C at the top are likely during the day. It should still be below freezing at night though, which will allow the snow cannons to operate, helping to keep the snow in good condition. 10cm of snow and a sharp drop in temperature is then expected on Thursday night.

Warm weather is also expected for Alta and Snowbird in Utah. The middle of the week is when it will be the warmest but night time temperatures will still be cold, perhaps down to around -16°C at the beginning of the week. Light snowfall and cold weather should then return next weekend.

Unfortunately the mild weather looks set to stay for the whole of this week on the east coast. 10°C can be expected at base level at Attitash Bear Peak with rain on Friday and Saturday. Even at the summit 8°C is expected.

Western Canada should see some milder weather on Wednesday and Thursday with temperatures possibly creeping above freezing at base level. This isn’t really warm enough to cause much damage to the snow but might make it a bit soft around the villages. Despite the warm weather Whistler is still expecting a further 71cm of snow to fall at the top at an altitude of 2284m. The brief warm spell on Wednesday and Thursday could deliver rain to mid mountain level but the snow depth is excellent so it shouldn’t affect the snow cover too much.

Brought to you by The Ski Club of Great Britain
Ski Club Website
Snow Reports
Ski resort guide

Snow Update (19 November 2009)

INTRODUCTION

Many more resorts in Europe and North America are opening this weekend.

Obertauern in Austria opened for the winter season on Thursday 19^th November. Despite the current mild weather the snow is holding up well and has allowed them to open a number of lifts and runs.

Several resorts in Switzerland are also opening this weekend. Flims/Laax has already opened for skiing and offers a good variety of terrain. Sunny weather this week will make for some good skiing.

Over in Canada, Whistler’s massive snowstorm continues and 221cm of snow has fallen since Thursday last week. They are rapidly heading towards their all time record for fresh snow in November, which was set in 2006. Incredibly deep powder can be found all over the upper half of the mountain.

Most of the available skiing at the moment in the USA is in Colorado. Vail opens its ski area on Friday 20^th November and with plenty of manmade snow it should be good fun skiing at the resort. Resorts on the east coast of America are trying to open but warm weather is hindering their snow making progress.

AUSTRIA

Despite the warm weather over Austria at the moment the snow is holding up well and this week more resorts are opening.

Thursday 19^th November was the first day of the season for Obertauern (25/45cm). Five lifts were opened and these are the Grünwaldkopf, Panoramabahn, Seekarspitzbahn, Kringsalmbahn and Hochalmbahn. Skiers are advised to stick to the marked open runs as snow cover is thin elsewhere.

Obergurgl (25/61cm) is also open. An upper base depth of over half a metre ensures good snow conditions on marked runs. An impressive 17 lifts are running at Obergurgl at the end of this week which is excellent for this time of year and there is plenty of skiing available.

Parts of the winter ski area at Solden (0/81cm) are now open. Nine lifts are open on the Rettenbach glacier and a further seven are open elsewhere in the Solden area. 3cm of fresh snow fell on the glacier on Wednesday night, further improving the ski conditions.

FRANCE

Six lifts and seven pistes are open at the Val Thorens (40/70cm) and due to the altitude the snow conditions are good, despite the mild weather elsewhere. It is advisable to stick to the marked runs as the cover off piste is very thin.

11 lifts are open at Tignes (15/50cm) this week, with most of these being on the glacier. It is still possible to ski down into Val Claret on the Double M piste. As with Val Thorens it is best to stick to the marked runs as there are uncovered rocks off piste. Light snow and colder weather is forecast for Monday which should help further improve the snow.

SWITZERLAND

An updated depth measurement from Saas Fee (19/155cm) now shows there is over a metre and a half of snow on the glacier. Their measurement on Monday showed the depth to be less than half a metre. 8cm of snow fell on Wednesday night on the upper slopes so there is a nice layer of fresh on top of the groomed snow. This combined with the sunny weather provides enjoyable skiing at the end of this week.

Flims/Laax (0/80cm) has opened for the winter season. Six lifts were running on Thursday, mostly from Crap Sogn Goin upwards. 5cm of snow fell on Monday which is still providing good slope conditions. More lifts could open on the Vorab Glacier this weekend.

The little resort of Zinal (5/60cm) near Zermatt (4/70cm) is open at weekends. The resort opens five of its lifts every Saturday and Sunday until

Saturday 12^th December when they should open daily.

USA

More resorts in America have opened this week. Solitude (56cm) in Utah and Winter Park (46cm) in Colorado are now both open. Winter Park has the most skiing available of the two, with seven lifts running this week. Two are running at Solitude and the base depth of more than half a metre provides some good skiing.

Elsewhere in Colorado, Vail (46cm) plans to open on Friday 20^th November. A largely manmade base depth is typical of Colorado in the early season but this means on piste conditions will be good for opening day. There isn’t a lot of snow off piste so stay on the marked runs.

It has gone warm on the east coast again. A temperature of 12°C is expected at Mount Snow this weekend bringing rain to both the upper and lower slopes. This isn’t good news as many of the east coast resorts should be opening around the end of November.

CANADA

Western Canada, particularly Whistler (189cm), continues to receive truly huge amounts of snow. The resort has seen 221cm of fresh snow fall on its upper slopes since last Thursday and another 211cm is forecast to fall before next Tuesday. This brings their total for the season so far to nearly four metres and this is before their original scheduled opening date of 26^th November. If the snow in the forecast is correct, they should break their all time record for fresh snow in November. Due to all the snow the powder skiing is phenomenal but do take extreme care as the avalanche danger is high to extreme.

It has also snowed a lot at Jasper (94/110cm) in Alberta. The resort has received 85cm of fresh snow since Thursday last week so there is plenty of great powder skiing at Jasper. Six out of a possible nine lifts are running giving great access to the powder snow.

Some of this snow also fell at Banff (66/94cm), where Sunshine Village and Lake Louise are currently open. Most recently, 11cm of snow fell at Sunshine Village on Tuesday night. Light snow is forecast over the weekend which should help keep their snow conditions excellent.

EUROPEAN WEATHER OUTLOOK

The mild weather in Europe at the moment is forecast to continue for the rest of this week. However the general trend is for colder and snowier weather to move in by Monday next week. It won’t bring large amounts of snow but it will be welcomed by all the resorts.

This weather trend is true for Austria. Hintertux is expecting the most of the snow when it arrives on Monday. 13cm alone should fall on Monday which will give a great boost to their skiing. The freezing level will also drop from around 3600m on Saturday to 1400m on Tuesday.

Les Deux Alpes in France is also expecting light snow on Sunday and Monday, amounting to around 13cm over both days. The snow should come coupled with a noticeable drop in temperatures, from 12°C at base level on Friday to 0°C by Tuesday.

NORTH AMERICAN WEATHER OUTLOOK

Apart from Timberline in Oregon and Jackson Hole in Wyoming, it should be fairly dry across the whole of America.

78cm of snow is forecast to fall at Timberline, predominantly over Friday and Saturday when 55cm will land. The snow will bring lower temperatures with it but once the snow has passed away, warmer weather will follow.

Jackson Hole should see 31cm of snow fall by Tuesday next week. Sunday and Monday is when the snow should be heaviest, and it will come as a welcome relief before the resorts planned opening day. You can expect temperatures of -16°C at the summit of Jackson Hole over the weekend and a more modest -9°C at the bottom.

No new snow is expected for resorts in Colorado over the weekend but it should remain cold. Night time temperatures in Vail will down to around -15°C which is plenty cold enough for the snow cannons to run.

The east coast of America is unseasonably warm still. Heavy rain is forecast for many of the resorts in that area, both on the upper and lower slopes. They desperately need colder temperatures to be able to resume their snow making as their opening dates are fast approaching.

Loads of snow continues to fall on the west coast of Canada. Whistler has received phenomenal amounts of snow already this season and the snowstorm is still going strong. A further 211cm of snow is expected to fall on the upper slopes by Tuesday next week which should mean the resort breaks its record for the snowiest November ever. The record currently stands at 416cm which was set in 2006 and they are currently on 362cm so far this month.

If you are planning a skiing holiday, let us advise you of the best locations and properties for your holiday. You can call us on +1865 398130 to talk to a travel consultant.

Brought to you by The Ski Club of Great Britain
Ski Club Website
Snow Reports
Ski resort guide

Snow Update (9th Nov 2009)

INTRODUCTION
It has been another good weekend for skiing in Europe. More snow and cold weather has done wonders for the open glacier resorts and has brought many others even closer to opening for the winter. Obergurgl in Austria opens this Friday then many more resorts open next week.

The open French glaciers received a good amount of snow over the weekend. Conditions on the Tignes glacier are excellent and it is possible to ski down to Val Claret now.

Switzerland and Italy both have great skiing to offer as well. The Presena glacier at Passo Tonale in Italy has now opened for the winter. Their massive base depth last season meant it didn’t all melt over the summer so they have nearly a metre and a half of snow on the glacier ski area already.

Keystone and Copper Mountain in Colorado, America, both opened this weekend and currently offer top to bottom skiing. Timberline in Oregon received a lot of snow over the weekend which has allowed them to open for the winter season.

FRANCE
Snow is still falling in the French Pyrenees, at resorts like Cauterets. There is no measured depth for the amount of snow that has fallen yet, but the webcam suggests there is a massive amount of new snow. Cauterets was forecast around a metre over the weekend, and there looks to have been about this much snow fall.

In the French Alps it has also been snowing, but not as much as in the Pyrenees.

Tignes (15/50cm) received fresh snow and the webcams show a good covering right down to base station level. Seven lifts and five pistes are open at Tignes, with one run down to Val Claret. Up on the Grande Motte glacier the snow is superb, with cold temperatures and fresh snow providing great riding conditions.

SWITZERLAND
Zinal (0/60cm) has now opened for weekend skiing. A 60cm base on the upper slopes provides nice early season turns. Six kilometres of pistes are open and it is possible to ski back down to the village at 1650m, which is excellent for early November. They plan to open daily from 14^th December.

Elsewhere in Switzerland, the Titlis glacier at Engelberg (0/45cm) has closed for lift maintenance. They are closed until 20^th November and then they should open daily for the winter season from 21^st November. A break in operations will allow the snow to build up without being skied on, and conditions should be very good for their opening in two weeks time.

Saas Fee (27/124cm) and Zermatt (12/100cm) both received a good dump of fresh snow over the weekend. Up to 15cm fell on both resorts and around 10cm of this fell to base level at Zermatt. It is only possible to ski on the glaciers at each resort at the moment but it is excellent up there thanks to the new snow.

AUSTRIA
More snow fell at our featured Austrian resorts over the weekend. Many of the glaciers received more than 15cm of snow on Sunday so there is plenty of fantastic skiing to be enjoyed on Monday. The Hintertux glacier (10/170cm) has the most terrain available, with 18 lifts running and more than 60kms of piste available.

Elsewhere resorts like Obergurgl and Obertauern, which are both expected to open within the next ten days, received a good amount of fresh snow. They have also been using the snow cannons in the cold temperatures so the slopes are looking very good for when the resorts open. Obergurgl should be the first of the major Austrian resorts to open, with Friday 13^th November their planned season start date.

USA
Timberline (79cm) has finally received a massive dump of snow, which has allowed them to open for snowsports for the winter season. 71cm of fresh snow fell over the weekend and they have managed to groom some of the snow and open two lifts. As you might expect the conditions have gone from terrible to brilliant with all the fresh snow. Off-piste skiing will be good but stick to the upper slopes for that, where the snow base is deepest.

Last weekend also saw the opening of Copper Mountain (46cm) in Colorado. A manmade snow base ensures good cover on the open runs down to the village level at 2800m. Three lifts are running and four trails are available to ski on.

In the east of America, Sunday River (15/30cm) managed another weekend of skiing but the temperature is very warm which is damaging the snow base considerably. They will need a return to cold weather to be able to make snow again.

CANADA
A lot of snow fell in parts of Canada over the weekend, especially at Banff (43cm). More than 35cm of fresh powder blanketed Sunshine Village on Sunday morning, while 15cm fell on both Lake Louise and Mt Norquay. Lake Louise opened for the first time this season on Saturday 7^th November and they have three runs open along with some rails in the park open. Sunshine Village is expected to open on Wednesday 11^th November, and the snow conditions are excellent.

Sun Peaks (48/65cm) and Mont Saint Anne are opening soon as well, both on Saturday 14^th November. This is an earlier than scheduled opening for Sun Peaks thanks to the great pre-season snowfall this year.

EUROPEAN WEATHER OUTLOOK
Heavy snow is expected across most of the Alps this week, especially in the west. It is expected to be quite warm though with the freezing level staying around 2300m, so this could bring rain to many resorts at base level. Snow will fall possibly to lower levels at night though. Above 2300m the snow cannons will be working and with the fresh natural snow the base depth will build up quickly. Saas Fee and Zermatt in Switzerland are expecting the most snow in Switzerland. 45cm should fall between now and the coming weekend. Most of this will fall above around 2000m but it will snow down to the resorts’ base level at night. The majority of this snow, 22cm, is expected next Saturday night from the current forecast. In Austria to the east, it is expected to be a drier week. A maximum of 16cm of new snow is expected at Zurs in the Arlberg region. It should be a cool week but by the time the weekend arrives abnormally warm weather is expected, with the freezing level briefly rising to 3150m on Friday at Zurs.

NORTH AMERICAN WEATHER OUTLOOK
Resorts in the state of Colorado in America are looking forward to the 20cm of snow that is forecast at the end of this week. It is expected to be very mild until Friday though then a storm will move through, bringing with it cold weather and around 20cm of snow. Breckenridge and Copper Mountain are expected to benefit from it the most, but all resorts will get some snow. In the east of America a brief dip to cooler temperatures midweek will be surpassed by a return to warm weather again. No new snow is expected at Sunday River. It could be cold enough in the middle of the week for them to make some snow. It does look like winter has finally started in the Pacific North West though as Timberline is expecting snow to fall all week. 46cm is expected by the weekend which is great news for their visitors.

Winter is well and truly established in Canada. Whistler is expecting by far the most snow this week of our reported Canadian resorts with 111cm expected to fall by the weekend. Around 30cm is expected each day this week and some of this should fall right down to base level too. Their opening date is only a few weeks away and it is shaping up to be a great start to their Olympic season. Elsewhere in Canada it should also be very snowy, particularly at Revelstoke and Kicking Horse who are expecting 60cm of new snow to fall by the weekend.

If you are planning a skiing holiday, let us advise you of the best locations and properties for your holiday. You can call us on +1865 398130 to talk to a travel consultant.

Brought to you by The Ski Club of Great Britain
Ski Club Website
Snow Reports
Ski resort guide

Snow News Is Good News.

According to today’s report from the experts at the Ski Club Great Britain, many European resorts are already enjoying a healthy serving of snow and predictions are there is more to come. Read on to find out where the earlier snowfalls are settling:

Val d’Isère and Tignes:

It has been snowing intermittently in the Espace Killy for a couple of weeks now. The Grand Motte at 3,456m received 10cm of snow over the weekend and even a covering in the town centre of, Tignes Le Lac last Monday. Forecasters expect another smattering to add to the 3 centimetres already seen this week at resort level. Three lifts are already operating in the ski area and more and more pistes are being classified open.

Gstaad:

Gstaad’s glacier 3,000 is one of four Swiss ski areas that are closed due to bad weather. Expect plenty of fresh powder when the clouds finally part.

Zermatt and Saas Fee:

Both these two resorts have opened early for skiing at the beginning of last week. Many of the elements of the Saas Fee snowpark have also already opened as well as five of the resort’s lifts.

For more information on current forecasts or to read through historical snow-reports, the Ski Club Great Britain’s website is a vital research tool. If you are planning an earlier season trip, let us advise you of the best locations for your holiday. You can call us on +1865 398130 to talk to a travel consultant or visit www.oxfordski.com for all our chalet listings.