Skiing weather

SKI SUMMARY

Resorts in France, Switzerland, Italy and Austria have all been enjoying the fresh snow they received last week. Glorious sunshine in Austria on Thursday allowed skiers to make the most of the fantastic conditions and recent snowfall. Austria received light snow for most of the week which means conditions at many resorts are fantastic. A big dump of snow in Scotland means that all their resorts offer excellent skiing now. Cairngorm remained closed on Thursday as the access road was blocked by large drifts. It's been cold in Colorado recently, with temperatures down to -20C. Ski Club leaders report fantastic conditions both on and off piste at Breckenridge and Aspen. Whistler received light snow this week although it was quite soft snow lower down.

Austria

After a week of low temperatures and fresh snow falling in many areas, Thursday 14th February saw higher temperatures and lots of sunshine across Austrian resorts. The Arlberg ski area is currently enjoying fantastic skiing due to loads of new snow over the past two weeks. With all of the lifts open in the area, powder skiing can easily be found in all of Lech (145/290cm), Zurs (145/290cm) and St Anton (85/255cm). Great skiing can also be found in the SkiWelt area, with glorious sunshine on Thursday allowing skiers to enjoy excellent pistes and pockets of un-skied powder still to be found off piste. Low temperatures throughout the week have kept snow conditions in resorts such as Soll (90/160cm) and Ellmau (90/160cm) in good shape. Some cloudy weather is likely to return to many areas over the week, bringing the possibility of fresh snow in higher areas. Next week looks set to bring more sunshine and clear skies in time for the busy half term week.

France

Better weather in French resorts allowed for excellent skiing everywhere on Thursday 14th February. This week's low temperatures and areas of fresh snow have led to great snow conditions right across the French Alps. Les Deux Alpes (120/210cm) was open with 43 lifts running on Thursday. Piste conditions in the area are in great shape and have been well maintained before the busy half term week. Lots of lifts were also open in the 3 Valley's ski area, with excellent snow both on and off piste in Val Thorens (185/340cm), Meribel (140/230cm) and Courchevel (155/227cm). The good weather currently being experienced in many areas is likely to continue over the weekend and well into next week. The exception to this could be in the Paradiski, where Les Arcs (130/280cm) and La Plagne (160/260cm) may see a cloudier weekend.

Switzerland

There is currently great skiing to be found across Swiss resorts, with sunshine arriving in most places on Thursday 14th February creating good visibility for skiers and boarders. Well maintained pistes in Grindelwald (94/238cm) are offering good skiing with the clear skies providing great views of the mountain. Over in Murren (130/305cm), there are still pockets of fresh powder to be found in the off piste terrain. Changeable weather can be expected over the weekend in Verbier (120/280cm) and Zermatt (75/250cm), with widespread sunshine for the coming week.

Italy

The weather at Passo Tonale (100/280cm) was quite sunny on Thursday, and all the runs were in fantastic condition. Sunny weather is expected over the weekend and into next week giving the perfect conditions to ski in. Claviere (60/240cm) has fantastic skiing on offer too, with the whole of the Milky Way ski area open.

Andorra

There were fantastic snow conditions across the Vallnord and Grandvalira ski area on Thursday 14th February thanks to snowfall earlier in the week and the dusting of fresh snow that fell on Thursday. Almost all the lifts were open in Pal/Arinsal (160/210cm) on Thursday, where powder skiing could be enjoyed on the off piste terrain as well as on some of the pistes. The cloudy and snowy weather is expected to replaced by sunshine and clear skies in time for the weekend.

Norway/Sweden

Hemsedal (85/120cm) received another 8cm of fresh snow on Thursday 14th February. With a temperature of -10C the mountain is in excellent condition and it should remain this way for the weekend. Salen (50/99cm) very nearly has a one metre base, which is excellent for the time of year. They were operating 85 of their 86 lifts on Thursday and with a low temperature the whole mountain is in excellent condition.

Germany

There is excellent skiing across German resorts at the moment; thanks largely to fresh snow earlier this week. Reasonable visibility in Reit im Winkl (78/230cm) on Thursday 14th February allowed lots of lifts to open, providing great skiing across the mountain. Low temperatures and high cloud cover in many resorts meant that upper pistes were kept firm, offering excellent conditions.

Bulgaria

A cloudy start to the day on Thursday 14th February brought with it a dusting of fresh snow in some areas. Earlier in the week, low temperatures and some sunshine provided excellent conditions in Borovets (85/230cm). Pamporovo (120/150cm) also made the most of the good conditions across the mountain with lots of lifts open and Thursday's 10cm of fresh snow likely to continue over the weekend and into next week. Cloudy skies will bring with them more fresh snow over the weekend, and during the first part of next week.

Scotland

There was another good dump of snow across Scotland on Wednesday 13th February, which brought between 20cm and 30cm of fresh snow. 20cm fell at Glencoe (65/240cm) over the course of the day. The mountain was closed on Wednesday but was open once again on Thursday, offering fantastic skiing. Milder weather meant the lower areas were quite soft and slushy but the snow further up is excellent. Over on the eastern side of the country Cairngorm (80/150cm) was closed on Thursday because the access road was blocked due to large snow drifts.

USA

There was no major fresh snowfall in the USA this week, but conditions are generally excellent across the board. The Ski Club leader in Breckenridge (114cm) said the runs are all in excellent condition but it was quite cold at -20C on Wednesday morning. A dusting of snow is expected at Breckenridge over the weekend. Alyeska (76/397cm) received 13cm of fresh snow on Wednesday 13th February. They've had a good season so far with over 12 metres of snow falling on the upper slopes. The best of the snow is on the upper half of the mountain but with all the runs open it's hard to go wrong.

Canada

This week has seen the welcome arrival of fresh snow in most places. 19cm of fresh powder fell on Wednesday 13th February in Banff (110/168cm), allowing for powder skiing across all three resorts in the area on Thursday 14th February. Kicking Horse saw 5cm fall on Thursday, boosting conditions nicely in time for weekend skiers and boarders. Revelstoke (193cm) also experienced a dusting of the white stuff on Thursday and benefitted from good visibility to enjoy it in. Higher temperatures than of late can be expected over the weekend, along with widespread cloud cover and the likelihood of fresh snow in many areas.