Snow for the Euros.

**bbirtle** · 04-10-2006, 08:23 AM

16h23, Chamonix TOWN (1000m). Dumping.

**wildstyle** · 04-11-2006, 09:27 AM

i did a quick check of the snow conditions in and around chamonix. it looks pretty awesome at the moment.

Flaine 140cms at resort 480!!!!cms at the top (and this is without a glacier ...)
Avoriaz 230cms at resort 290cms at the top

if i wasn't injured, i'd be making a beeline for the portes du soleil / grand massif area and getting some.

**Arno** · 04-11-2006, 10:20 AM

looks fuggin sweet and i am jealous. hitting whistler this weekend so can't complain too much though

**bbirtle** · 04-11-2006, 12:03 PM

4/11 - La Flegere.

ing Awesome. The fat ski crowd was strangely absent (seasoneers left for the season? everybody at Les GM?), leaving obvious lines completely open for well into the afternoon.

Started with Lachenal bowl - first track in - good pow at near knee depth, but some massive avalanche debris to pick through over there made it just "ok". 2nd-4th runs basically right down the friggin lift lines, all untracked and those runs made my wittle toes tingle. 5th-7th runs, hit secret Birtle pow stash #1. No traversing, and you get that "ohhmygod is that...? ALL MINE!" feeling as you crest a bend to see wide open powpowpow...

8th-10th runs, high traverse (~5min) to secret Birtle pow stash #2. Excellent, fairly light pow for the top half turning to sludge on the bottom half.

The mountain fully tracked out, I took the bin down congradulating myself on a job well done.

4500m of pow skiied, in April, in Chamonix, in bounds. NOT TOO SHABBY.

I heard Idris was getting his fur on down at Megeve... wonder if he was able to snarf some up...?

PS - My legs fell like they are ready to fall off now.

**Ripzalot** · 04-11-2006, 01:24 PM

way ta get on it!

G3000 closed today, reporting 40cms fresh.
Mont Fort (Verbier) closed today, reporting 38cms fresh.
SSB closed today, no update (bastards!) but i would expect similar.

plus whatever fell today. all should be open.

**subtle plague** · 04-11-2006, 01:30 PM

60 in engelberg.

**bbirtle** · 04-11-2006, 02:23 PM

Originally Posted by Ripzalot

...Mont Fort (Verbier) closed today, reporting 38cms fresh...

SWEET news... Idris and I will be there tomorrow...

**TeleAl** · 04-12-2006, 01:44 AM

About 50cm in Leysin. All very nice, but heavy lower down.
Kicked off a couple sloughs/slides, nothing too big, but it is moving.

Get it while you can, it will change quick!

**Ripzalot** · 04-12-2006, 02:14 AM

Originally Posted by TeleAl

About 50cm in Leysin. All very nice, but heavy lower down.
Kicked off a couple sloughs/slides, nothing too big, but it is moving.

Get it while you can, it will change quick!

you got lucky so far. combe still closed. looks like it will be a scex rouge to reusch day...and i sure can't complain about that!

**TeleAl** · 04-12-2006, 03:14 AM

Originally Posted by Ripzalot

you got lucky so far. combe still closed. looks like it will be a scex rouge to reusch day...and i sure can't complain about that!

don't try to leave any.
but I hope some is left for me.

**Foggy_Goggles** · 04-12-2006, 05:13 AM

At least 60cms up high at La Grave. The last week has been unreal. The glacier should be opening today. Get it if you can. I'm in Grenoble working my way back to Zurich.

**subtle plague** · 04-12-2006, 05:30 AM

[Xover]ok beyooochteeess [Xover] im in engelberg tomorrow and friday.

and it has not cleared yet

**Ripzalot** · 04-12-2006, 11:21 AM

today was surreal. it's april and it snowed most of the way to G3000 from lausanne - dumping when i arrived. 3 cars in the parking lot including mine. counted 4 skiers and 3 boarders total for the day. it was fucking schweet. double over-the-boot blower top to bottom. and might i mention the current reported snow depth is 420cm.

i'm putting this day in the "best box"....

clearing late in the day. tomorrow is gonna rock...

**bbirtle** · 04-12-2006, 11:32 AM

I like Verbier.

I like Verbier A LOT.

That is all.

**hev** · 04-12-2006, 01:05 PM

Originally Posted by Foggy_Goggles

At least 60cms up high at La Grave. The last week has been unreal. The glacier should be opening today. Get it if you can. I'm in Grenoble working my way back to Zurich.

damn you!

**Franz Klammer** · 04-12-2006, 01:40 PM

I hate all of you, my fellow Euros ...

**subtle plague** · 04-12-2006, 01:55 PM

visibility wasn't that bad and someone was up in engelberg today. they skied the laub and said that steinberg was too deep to ski

superlight fluff.
wwaaaaahooooo

**Ripzalot** · 04-13-2006, 09:51 AM

G3000: the combe didnt open but is DEFINITELY OPEN TOMORROW (website already updated). another day of reusch laps (plus one scex rouge to cabanne run). fun pow all over getting a little heavy down low towards afternoon but totally rippable with faceshots all day.

**Tectonically_Neglected** · 04-13-2006, 10:20 AM

It physically hurts to read this...

(damn moving shite).

Rock on bro's

**bbirtle** · 04-13-2006, 10:37 AM

Originally Posted by Ripzalot

G3000: the combe didnt open but is DEFINITELY OPEN TOMORROW (website already updated). ...

Damn! I was at Verbier as of 5 PM today. I called Al to try and hook up for tomorrow but he says something about having visitors in town blahblahblah. I gotta get your number in my phone, Ripz. I would have happily surfed your couch if you were willing tonight and help tear up the combe tomorrow...

Well back in Cham now, ohh well, next time.

***

As for today... fuck me, Verbier is awesome. The Mont Fort opened up so we got one good run right under the cablecar lines towards Siviez in knee-deep dry pow (the top half, turning to thick nasty lower down, but who cares). Lapped it again, getting tracked up still decent, did the Stairway to Heaven hike that Al showed me. Jackpot! Getting towards waist-deep pow in there, mostly untracked. Viz started to deteriorate so broke for lunch, then did 3-4 laps on the cable car line, the one coming down from the base of the Mont Fort lift passing by the Cabane de Mont Fort... knee-deep untracked for about 50% of the way, the other 50% a little chopped up but still wonderful.

AWESOME

**TeleAl** · 04-15-2006, 06:26 AM

Weather moved in around noon here.
Snowline is 2000m at moment.

Sat image is ridiculous
http://www.met.fu-berlin.de/wetter/meteosat/met_512.mpg
(this might update itself)

**bbirtle** · 04-17-2006, 02:56 PM

Originally Posted by Lostinthetrees

When the weather and/or snow is good, G3000 is heaven on earth!

When the weather and/or snow is shitty, G3000 is pure hell!

Hah! Reminds me of a time I went to Les Grands Montets. Idris and I took the Herse (a six-seater charlift) with winds so strong it was rocking around the chair - snowing like mad, white-out conditions. Unload at the top and head skier's right, still with the winds, heavy snowfall, and zero viz.

Snow was good - 50cm of fresh light fluffy, but very tracked out. There were like 100 people on the slope with us - I kid you not. It was almost like tree skiing because you could get an idea of the slope using the massive crowds as a reference point.

The parking lot was full and there was an hour queue at the bottom. Chamonix people ski this stuff like three times a week and somehow LOVE it!

* * *

On a brighter note, Monday, 4/17: Got a crazy idea to solo the Glaciar Rond - a 40-45 degree sustained 800m hanging glaciar/couloir. Mostly due to not finding partners but once I got into it, it was really suprirsingly an incredible feeling, alone on the mountain, nobody to turn to, knowing any bad move and they wouldn't find my body until Summer, if ever. "In the Zone" you might say.

I enjoyed it so much I couldn't be bothered to wait for some friends at the bottom and launched back up to solo the Col du Plan route - another 40-45 degree thing with a lot less exposure.

Not that I'm gonna make a habit of this but I see what people mean over in the thread about soloing, in terms of the feeling of it all.

Conditions were surprisingly very good... not too many tracks on the Glaciar Rond and even was light powder at the top, turning to still very good not-too-tracked-out consolidated pow. Then slushy at the very end - the "end" still being above 2000m (start is 3850m). Col du Plan first pitch was equally awesome - powpowpow, not too tracked. Second pitch had a big avalanche a few weeks ago and now is still really icy after everybody side-slipped off the new stuff, down to glacial ice. Lower down, heavier, but easy to get fresh tracks doing Al's "community service" and bringing the lines just a little closer to the crevasses...

These last couple weeks have been incredible skiing and have gotten me stoked more than any other time in the season... too bad it's over soon...

... but maybe I have a few more tricks up my sleave well into May.

Bon ski, Euros.