Snowing in Le Lavachet, Tignes right now. Forecast is for snow down to 1600m – could be wet in La Tania, but powder just above the resort.

Go Hard Tomorrow….

Nico
 

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Strike is Over
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Common sense prevails and all Courchevel lifts are open again this morning. Clouding over this evening and snow expected down to 1500m. Warm temps yesterday softened the snow considerably (avalanche risk has risen from 1 to 2 out of 5) but Winter is set to return by the weekend hopefully.

Toffa

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DESPITE OF STRIKE HAD A GREAT DAY
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8.45 left La Tania for Meribel Village straight onto the lift and set off on our weekly chalet tour to the 4th Valley. Once through Meribel had no more than a couple of minutes queing.Lovely run down Lanches then the Stade and Plan Fontaine home.

NICK NICKSKI

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Courtesy of HAT: There has still been no snow as we predicted last week. If you believe medium term weather forecast models, they are showing considerable low pressure activity from 1st March with N and NW weather streams covering the Alps. We will be able to tell you more about this next week. But at the moment 1st March or 8th March look like good weeks for powder hounds.

The risk level is going up from 1 to 2 on account of both the warm weather and some transformation of the snow in shady high altitude n facing slopes. So keep an eye on the bulletins.

Many areas are safe but there are three main areas of risk:

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LOVELY SUNNY DAY AND GREAT SKIING ON AND OFF PISTE
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Okay, busy week but took guests to 4th Valley and Bouchet highest point via Peclet and home for 3.30. Top tip sandwich for lunch and ski when everyone else is eating. Only queued for more than 5 minutes on 3 lifts out of 18.

NICK NICKSKI

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Unnoficial time is 5 hrs 43 mins. Well done to Aaron, Rich and Will.
They truly went hard…. New Escapade in a day record holders!

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SUN!
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Another beautiful sunny day as the high pressure system continues to dominate the weather systems. Excellent piste skiing continues, the slopes above 1650 are perfect…. Some directly exposed sunny slopes and heavily skied areas are becoming hard and worn by mid afternoon but well worth making it out for that first lift to enjoy the perfect corderoy and some quiet slopes before the mid morning busy spell.

Jimbo

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WHAT A FAB WEEK
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Just had one of the best weeks of the season a foot of powder and then wonderful sunny days and relatively quiet pistes with very few queues.Every single run is open in the 3 Valleys including the Grand Couloir

NICK NICKSKI

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Missed this one from Rich of Ski Magic in the aftermath of those great days at the beginning of the week – bright sun, cloudless deep blue skies and powder (between the avalanche debris) – Go Hard son…

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Sun is out once again this morning after a wet day yesterday – raining in resort but pistes still in near perfect condition. Three Valleys posting 2 out of 5 off piste avalanche risk this morning. But as Henry says below – there’s a lot more to it than that…

Courtesy of the excellent Henry’s Avalanche Talk
“The last 7 days have been characterised by a series of modest snowfalls with some sunshine and mildish weather in between. As a result, the recorded snow depths high up have increased by 20-40cm.

This has produced a great improvement compared to the wind packed sun crusted conditions we were experiencing last Tuesday and Wednesday.

The risk is that slabs that were formed when we had strong Foehn winds were covered by more snow early last week and could therefore create some medium size avalanches. The risks of triggering these avalanches are bigger around ridges and convexities.

Reports from high up (above 2750) include references to bottomless powder. Reports from below 2100m suggest the snow is humidified or even crusted a bit. South facing steeper slopes that had crusted in the sun before do not have enough new snow on them, so you can ski them, but you will hit the old crusted layer quite often.

The good news is the base is quite stabilised compared to last season, there is no widespread weak layer of depth hoar, but caution is still required.

The are two recurring themes this season. The situation is constantly complicated by the wind. Yet again we have had snow falling with wind from the south east and then followed by wind from the west. This means you have to really observe where the wind has blown the snow and where any wind slab exists.

Also it has often been the case, that the risk level in the avalanche bulletin is a forecast and not always what the guides find when they get out there. This week some areas reported a risk level 4 on Tuesday and then a risk level 3 today. Then the official position for tomorrow is risk level 2. However reports from Tuesday say that it was not a risk level 4. There was little sign of natural avalanche activity.

The forecast is for a large high pressure to come in a re create springlike conditions with mild sunny afternoons and a good refreeze each night. So the best off piste will be North East to West and high. South East to SW will be sun affected. The February sun may well not be strong enough to create a true “spring snow”.

The long term models suggest more unsettled weather from 15th February (we shall see?) “

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Quick mention for these guys – some great stuff, more dance orientated, they can really play – catch ‘em, while you can…

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