After a fairly warm week in Chamonix with a mixture of sunshine and snow showers and a freezing level remaining over 2000 metres, it’s all about to cool down again this weekend. We’ve got classic spring skiing conditions at the moment due to overnight freezing and then snow melt during the warmer days.
Winter vibes returning
Thursday we have a cloudy day with light precipitation, snow showers over about 2500 metres and on Friday a return of the sunshine. However, all change at the weekend, Saturday will feel decidedly wintery again as a cold front with a strong north westerly flow comes through and the freezing level will drop over the weekend to around 1000 metres.
This will bring light to moderate snow up to around 14cm to the resorts in the north of the Northern Alps during Saturday and into Sunday morning, Verbier looks likely to benefit the most from the weekend's snow getting around 20 cm. Les Deux Alpes and Alpe d’Huez resorts a little further south in the Northern Alps could miss this weekend's snow but will really make up for it on Monday and Tuesday when they are forecast to get around 40cm of fresh snow. For the more Northern resorts light snow and snow showers are forecast.
Over 2200 metres we still have very good snow coverage, but the lower resorts are now suffering with a lack of snow and no natural snow base, however the piste groomers are doing an incredible job of keeping the pistes in good condition.
Avalanche risk
For most of the northern Alps the avalanche level is at a limited 2 out of 5 with the most unstable slopes being the shady and north, north west and north east facing slopes over about 2200 metres. As always check the current avalanche risk in resort and don't head off-piste if you don't have the up to date information, equipment and guidance.
This weeks video below is off piste in the Three Vallees and above photo out on the Vallee Blanche this week.
