Snow for the Euros.

[Idris]

2 of did decide to see how far we could ski down today..I had snowed in Chamonix town center last night - as is normal the day after the Grand Montets closes for the season.

Up high the snow was over a foot deep and soft



Lower down it got heavy. Then thin



Then all a bit silly



I did manage to decend on ski all but 150m and the top 7-800m was rather nice.

[bbirtle]

...How about something mellower? hike/skin up to Gd-St-B and then a skin up to the pass above. Looks into Val Ferret. View 360.

Friday. Take train over to Martigny and can pick-up.

Hmm... I'll mention it to Idris tonight. Actually we were thinking to hit the early Midi lift and do a really mellow (like less than one hour) tour over to Hellbronner, grab a cappuchino, then ski out the Vallee Blanche. Advantage over St. Bernard here being you get a 3800m -> 1800m descent out of your 60 minute ski tour, and did I mention we got 150cm of snow recently.

You're welcome to swing by Chamonix and join us.

(I'll send you a PM as well)

[bbirtle]

Good stuff on the hill today. Idris, Redskea, the South Africas, the Swedes, and two crazy Americans caught the "Special Alpinist" 8 AM only morning run of the Grand Montets cablecar. I counted exactly three "alpinists" and around a hundred local freeriders with no intention of doing anything else other than skiing straight back down. Snow quite thick but perhaps a meter or more fresh that you just sink down into. Making for some excellent turns and then even good fun on the Pierre a Ric all the way from summit to parking lot. Ka-ching on 6200ft of vert even though the place is "closed for the season".

Lunch break and waffling, caffiene injection, Idris and I hit up the Midi. Idris heads off solo to do the Col du Plan and I splinter off to do the Glaciar Rond with a random French dude we met on the lift. Some icy patches, but generally ~amazing~... somewhat heavy pow around a meter deep on a sustained 40-45 degree, 800m slope. Ka-ching, 5000ft more vert.

The French dude wants to do the Col du Plan, so up again we go. The fixed lines on the Midi Arete are down but in a meter of pow, we're skiing right from the gate along the ridge with little difficulty. Col du Plan ironically (for Idris) way more icy than the Glaciar Rond, with big bits having avalanched down to the glacial base. But some good turns and later down some rip-roaring wide fast spring freshie turns. Ka-ching, 6200ft more thank you pull through.

TOTAL: 6200 + 5000 + 6200 = 17400ft (5600m) of fresh tracks, mid-May in the Alps.

YES.

[Arno]

so are you stoked on Chamonix again?

[skier666]

I hate it when bbirtle resorts to pow Mathematics....

[bbirtle]

so are you stoked on Chamonix again?

Stoke level goes up and down like a crack addit it seems.

Looking back now at The End the great memories are all intermingled with the days I just wanted desperately to ski somewhere else... better than a desk job in Chicago so I'm going to try not to complain too much, but I still think it will be my last winter in Chamonix.

[Below Zero]

I just noticed that this is the largest thread in TGR history, so I just wanted to be a part of it.

Carry on.

[subtle plague]

not for long

[Ripzalot]

it's not that hot. 0C at 2500m today.



edit: ahh. you meant "right now" as in friday as snow-forecast predicts. harmp.

[Hicks]

So what's up with all the places east of Innsbruck? Conditions still o.k., Klar, Keksie?
Glockner high alpine road and Oberwalder hut should opern right now for access to Glockner área.

[Ripzalot]

well, that hot weather never arrived. and ironically, they are now calling for snow down to 1000m over monday/tuesday.

but really, it just messes up the mountain biking at this point.

[klar]

So what's up with all the places east of Innsbruck? Conditions still o.k., Klar, Keksie?
Glockner high alpine road and Oberwalder hut should opern right now for access to Glockner área.

well, i don't know about Glockner but Stubai is still skiable, fwiw, nice with some new snow on thursday, warm and sunny friday, warmer and raining at 3000+ m sat and today. snow=mashed potatoes, the hot weather definitely arrived here.
were you in the glockner area over the long weekend? if so, was it raining or snowing?

[bbirtle]

...My skis put away. No base below 2500m...

I skied a half meter of pow in Zermatt last July - no rock dodging, no spring snow, not one of these skin-up-one-run things, I mean all lift accessible 50cm fresh at around 35-45 degrees, at least 500m vert on Kliene Matterhorn laps - it stayed around for at least a week before the wind toasted it. I also ski toured the Breithorn around once a week August-October and a lot of times got great pow runs, finishing off with the afternoon in the Gravity Park.

Of course as it's all on glaciers, extra care is required, and if you don't have a free pass like I did it's probably not worth the effort, but, it's good skiing...

Klar - "l'automne est le printemps d'hiver" - nice!

[TeleAl]

Sorry to break this news, but the season is over dudes.

Until then, I suggest that we all enjoy the sun and bikinis along Le Leman,
(the naked beach is in Epesses for those not wishing to have their view marred by fabric)
get out and ride, climb, hike, spy lines for next season, fly around,
and toss a snowball if you happen upon snow.

Take a pic and post it for stoke in whatever you do.

Thanks for the info this season. It makes a difference.

[Idris]

Sorry to break this news, but the season is over dudes.

not yet it ain't skied 1800 meters of vertical today - lift served untracked corn!

[Hicks]

were you in the glockner area over the long weekend? if so, was it raining or snowing?

No, haven't been but have plans to go there in two weeks.

[subtle plague]

50cm+ of fresh for northern alps above 1000m coming our way.
the season in engelberg ended at the 28th.(though 3.5m still on top and skiable down to the lake at 1800 i'd guess) do i have to disguise as a japanese touron now, or can i go "glacier skiing" ?

[davidof]

Sun, Sex and Snow, what more could you want?

This was the Alps last weekend (21st)



but it was getting pretty hot yesterday, I gave up the traditional Beret Chasseur Alpin for a Bob



so I'm looking forward to this fresh dump although the zero iso is at 3,500 meters at the moment

For those that are interested this is a review of the Snow conditions this winter in France

[Meathelmet]

Sun, Sex and Snow, what more could you want?

Well, that frigging "sex" part for starters!!?







The rest two you pretty much covered...

[Ripzalot]

now that's funny!



PS and it's getting damn cold outside!

[TeleAl]

30 May 2006 08h45
Leysin, Suisse Altitude = 1264m.

Look what showed up outside my window this morning.

[klar]

maybe you should rethink your signature.

[Idris]

It was snowing in Chamonix at 8am - Now retreated to 1300m or so and still snowing.

[subtle plague]

engelberg 50cm +x and i'll be there tomorrow. (i hope they open for "glacier skiing")
skiable down to trübsee
June Pow im coomiing.
see you later bitches !

[Ripzalot]

engelberg 50cm +x and i'll be there tomorrow. (i hope they open for "glacier skiing")
skiable down to trübsee
June Pow im coomiing.
see you later bitches !

looking good! Meiental Laucheren (2210m) and Urseren Giltnasen (2170m) are reporting +71cms since Monday.

so does eberg run the lift up to the top even when there is nothing open? and it is okay for skiing?

hmmmm...