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Snow report 22 February 2024
This last week has been really mild for the time of year and mainly sunny in Chamonix. Once again the piste bashers have been doing a top rate job in keeping the pistes well maintained, but it is feeling quite icy out there, especially in the shady areas and on the lower slopes. Due to the mild temperatures it has felt like spring skiing, icy until around 10am, great until about 2pm and then slushy in the afternoons on the lower slopes. Long late lunches on sunny terraces have been the order of the day! There’s mud creeping onto the lower pistes and some areas are starting to look a little more brown than white with some gravely patches poking through.
Snow is coming
However it all clouded over yesterday, it is currently raining below 2300 metres and fairly windy today but temperatures are due to fall and heavy snow is expected this evening, which is causing much excitement in Chamonix. This is due to the effects of a Föhn over the Northern Alps. The freezing level tonight will be down to around 1200 metres and we are expecting between 22 and 44cm of new snow in the next three days! There is a low pressure and a cold front coming through finally!
We’ll see light snow on Friday, snow showers during the day over the weekend and heavy snow on Sunday evening. The forecast is showing snow through Monday too when the freezing level will go right down to around 400 metres. On Sunday and Monday alone, there is around 25 - 35cm of fresh snow predicted, but there could be more!
Avalanche risk
The current avalanche level is around 2 out of 5 in the northern Alps. However, with any significant snowfall the risk on the north facing slopes will increase due to instability of the new snow on a weakening layer beneath. The south facing slopes that are more exposed to the sun tend to have a more solid base and will generally be more stable.
This weeks great video below comes from The Guides Courchevel, off piste in the Three Vallees
Watch this
Busy slopes this week
We’re in the middle of the school holidays here in Chamonix, so the slopes are busier and we must be mindful to ski safely and be aware of those around us.
We’re never too experienced to remind ourselves of The ten FIS (International Ski Federation) rules of ski safety, please read here.
To make the most of your time on the slopes, here are a few tips:
- To steer clear of the crowds, aim to ski during the off-peak times such as - early mornings, jump on the first lifts. Ski through lunchtime and enjoy a late lunch then ski again later in the afternoon when the mountain tends to be less busy.
- Be mindful of the ski school hotspots, meeting times and places and plan your route accordingly. If you must ski in these areas, try to do so at different times than the ski schools meet.
- Make the most of your half-term week by exploring all the additional activities and exciting fun events available in the resort.
- Be sure to catch the torchlight descents and fireworks displays.
- Always check the avalanche risk in resort and don't head off-piste if you don't have the up to date information, equipment and guidance.
Updates
Scroll down to see live forecasts, lift status, links to webcams and above for real time photos from Chamonix. We will be updating this snow report page every Thursday, so check back in with us next week to see how the pistes are doing and what you can expect from the snow forecast for the next seven days.
We need you!
If you're in Chamonix this week, we'd love to see your images, especially videos, of what you've been up to. So when you post to Facebook or Instagram, please tag us SeeChamonix. Every week, we'll be posting our favourite videos and images here and sharing on our social media, along with our weekly resort snow report.
Happy skiing, we'll see you out on the pistes!
