 Poster: A snowHead
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GM very thinly populated too, viz was fine in the trees, but it looked pretty bleak up top. Roll on the sun.
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Obviously A snowHead isn't a real person
Obviously A snowHead isn't a real person
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I've walked the arete prior to the handrail being put out - almost exactly 2 years ago to the day. Not sure if I'd prefer to be doing it on skis though. Ropes & crampons were comforting.
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Well, the person's real but it's just a made up name, see?
Well, the person's real but it's just a made up name, see?
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| muddewater wrote: |
| Isn't that the bit where you are normally roped together and there is makeshift railings in place? |
Looks more like the door you have to use when the main ice-tunnel exit has not been cleared, but I could be wrong.
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Well, I reckon today was the end of the epic run we've had here for the last 3 (or is 4?) weeks. Skied Brevent this morning and the snow in the Brevent Col sector (Hotel Face etc) was still great quality powder but the sun was really warm so I fear that the dreaded melt/freeze/crust cycle will have started this afternoon. We also skied the Bozon couloir into the Brevent bowl and down to the valley floor- the conditions here were pretty firm but still fun.
So, to summarise....... The sun's out and looks to be staying out all week. Most of the popular off-piste is tracked out. Anyone who said that now is the time to be here is wrong- it was last week or the week before or the week before that. When's the next storm coming??!!
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Anyway, snowHeads is much more fun if you do.
Anyway, snowHeads is much more fun if you do.
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Looks like another ropey old season ahead eh snowprincess? 
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ww166no, ha ha. Last season = absolutely bloody awful (and don't try and deny it). The last month = amazing, best skiing of my life. The next 4 months = ???????. I'm feeling hopeful  .
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. . . but . . . but . . . but . . . OK, you win! We'll both look forward to lots more of the same till May shall we?
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snowprincess, Watched someone huck a huge rock on the hotel face this afternoon, was it you?
The floria drag was opened at 12 today, which opened up a huge area of untracked real estate.
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You'll get to see more forums and be part of the best ski club on the net.
You'll get to see more forums and be part of the best ski club on the net.
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jbob, no, my hucking skills are pitiful so definitely wasn't me. Sounds like you were in the right place at the right time with the floria lift  .
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Flegere at around 3.30 today.
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snowHeads are a friendly bunch.
snowHeads are a friendly bunch.
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According to noza's wiggles it starts snowing again on the 15th Jan at around 1.15am and snows for the following ten days.
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And love to help out and answer questions and of course, read each other's snow reports.
And love to help out and answer questions and of course, read each other's snow reports.
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Really nice days in Chamonix. Full of snow. Today still fresh lines in Pas de chevre, really in an amazing condition.
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| jbob wrote: |
The floria drag was opened at 12 today, which opened up a huge area of untracked real estate. |
or even easier access to the skin tracks me and my mate laid up to Col des Aig. Croches. I looked down as the pisteurs took first tracks down the "pistes"! We found lovely snow in the back area, then some patches of lovely stuff on our descent to Le Buet along with some crust.
As snowprincess said, melt/freeze. Its like spring skiing now!
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You know it makes sense.
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| AlTom wrote: |
| Today still fresh lines in Pas de chevre, really in an amazing condition. |
lucky you! jealous and the route down on the ice is ok?
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Otherwise you'll just go on seeing the one name:
Otherwise you'll just go on seeing the one name:
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| AlTom wrote: |
| Really nice days in Chamonix. Full of snow. Today still fresh lines in Pas de chevre, really in an amazing condition. |
fancied doing this again in 5 or 6 days time when i get back to town. how warm is it getting over there, do you reckon the exits will still be holding the snow?
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Poster: A snowHead
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Had some nice snow yesterday off the plan du midi, slightly heavy powder, plenty of untracked snow, the track at the bottom was a little icy, with a couple patches of avalanche debris.
Also found some stashes on the back side of Le Tour.
midgetbiker, also thinking of doing a pas de chèvre next tue/wed on my new Preachers! Don't know about the exit but it's very cold right now will keep my ears open, Noza's wiggles are calling it for the 19th for the next snow.
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Obviously A snowHead isn't a real person
Obviously A snowHead isn't a real person
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Great skiing last week in Cham/Argentiere. Under a New, it was wonderful to see the weather materialise and there's a great base there now for the season.
Highlight for me was guided day through the trees in St Gervais on thursday which was a blast in the fresh falling poudre!!
Was driving back on Saturday but had good fun in Combe de la Pendant and the magic forest- all good!! Can't wait to get back after the next dumps.
That link to the thread and photos of La Poubelle (Thanks OffPisteSkiing) both got me excited and more than a little envious- on the the to do list for sure!! That and the full run down the magic forest, so many wonderful things to do yet, luvin it...
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Well, the person's real but it's just a made up name, see?
Well, the person's real but it's just a made up name, see?
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Last two days have been skiing mainly on piste at Le tour and Flegere. For those coming out this weekend the first thing to say is that it's cold. The sun has been shining non stop all week, with little wind. The pistes are in great condition with mostly soft grippy snow and no bare patches. Towards the end of the week and at the end of the day some hardpack has been showing through but nothing too painful. Off piste is now well battered, some of the side piste almost like a piste. There is still the odd pocket of soft snow in the trees but you need to go look for it.
It's not the powder heaven of the Xmas/New Year period but still great skiing, plus the slopes are very quiet which is nice.
I will post a couple of photos later.
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midgetbiker, Pas de Chevre exits
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Anyway, snowHeads is much more fun if you do.
Anyway, snowHeads is much more fun if you do.
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Piste conditions.
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You'll need to Register first of course.
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Nice pics, jbob!!
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just testing sms - off to cham next week! (via SMS)
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woohoo, it works!
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You'll get to see more forums and be part of the best ski club on the net.
You'll get to see more forums and be part of the best ski club on the net.
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jma, You have picked a good week. Snow expected, thurs, fri, sat and Sunday.
Its been a fantastic few days in full sunshine, it has been very cold, -14c at night and hardly making zero all the day. Conditions remain great, skiing at GM today, the pistes were well groomed and fast but a little scraped off by three PM, snow making on the home run. The off piste is very entertaining with ever growing moguls, but with soft tops and powdery puddles in between, thanks I guess to the polar weather.
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Hope so jbob, but not out 'til Thurs evening (26th) so hopefully something left for us by then - or it dumps from this Thurs to next!
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snowHeads are a friendly bunch.
snowHeads are a friendly bunch.
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Any chance of an update on Cham from someone who's there - understand there's been some fresh falls - coming out tomorrow am for 4 days on the slopes and can't wait!
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And love to help out and answer questions and of course, read each other's snow reports.
And love to help out and answer questions and of course, read each other's snow reports.
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Snowing right now D_Struktion, forecast to continue on and off for the next few days . . . snowline around Cham town as I type. 0 sun till middle of next week.
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D_Struktion, what ww166no, said. It's been great all week with blue skies. It's lamping down right now, the roads are treacherous so if your in a car take it easy. The freeze line has been hovering around 1000m (the height of cham) all day but is dropping now, 18.30.
It's due to snow all day tomorrow, the freeride comp has been put back to Sunday. The avalanche level has been lifted to 4. At GM and le tour today only the home run was open mainly due to the wind high up but also no viz.
There was an avalanche at GM this morning in a couloir that runs on to the home run, set off by three off piste skiers, one broken leg resulted, I would say they were lucky.
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You know it makes sense.
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We were at gm all morning. The three lower chairs were open. Marm. was quite brutal but tabe and plan were sheltered enough. Then all closed, so went to les h to keep in the trees. It was v quiet, but the snow was lovely. Our first day was yesterday, and everything was hard, so today's snow has improved both on and off piste immeasurably. Even the skiers thought so!
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Otherwise you'll just go on seeing the one name:
Otherwise you'll just go on seeing the one name:
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jbob, sounds like they were lucky indeed, i guess that was the 'waterfall'couloir?
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Poster: A snowHead
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@baggyboy how was les houches, snow & skier-wise? I'm out there in two weeks. Also, how did you get there, car or bus?
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Obviously A snowHead isn't a real person
Obviously A snowHead isn't a real person
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ww166no, couloir Phillipe.
cardweg, les houches is in great nick, plus had three foot of new snow last night if my car is anything to go by, just don't want to dig the wrong one out by mistake.
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Well, the person's real but it's just a made up name, see?
Well, the person's real but it's just a made up name, see?
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Back to les h today. Nothing open until about 11, but we heard nothing else opened at all? We were in the first gondola up, and went straight down grand-b. Groin deep powder, but was all tracked within the hour, and by then the rest of the area was already over-run. So, snow here is as good as elsewhere, but it cant take the crowds. We had a lift from our chalet - loris, so were queueing at 9ish but saw lots of crammed buses heading to the bubble, and again we heard that access was constrained later.
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You need to Login to know who's really who.
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off to try G.M as all the other high lifts are not opening up today.
wish me luck in the que's! maybe megeve/st gervais would have been a better call..
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Anyway, snowHeads is much more fun if you do.
Anyway, snowHeads is much more fun if you do.
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OliC, how did you get on, we were late starting and by 11:30 the queue at GM was a couple of hours long, we retreated and had an afternoon Nordic skiing. I did hear that those that made it had a great time in the fresh powder.
Les Houches the day before was again great when we finally made it up. The lifts were no problem but as the whole valley had descended on it the car parks were a challenge.
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We arrived at G.M at about 10ish and got queing for an hour or so. Once we made it up it was suprisinlgy quiet. Herse chair was fairly tracked but heavy powder type snow, we went over to Marmottens and charged a run right underneath it on the ridge line/trees then hit up a few magic gardens. After a quiet lunch we did a couple of couloirs back to the car park and les isles. magical for a few 100metres, and then super heavy by the bottom. the lower gullies parts of the gullies had already been set off (avalanches) so we did really little pitches for safety, but generally everything was really stable.
we called it a day at about half 2, and then both me and my mate got an extra shift of work to top up the funds!
over towards retour pendant and that lavancher side bowl was some serious windslab so don't know if they will open it tomorrow. I think tomorrow is skinnig fitness. Jbob is overtaking us with his nordic fitness by the sounds of it!
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| baggyboy wrote: |
| Back to les h today. Nothing open until about 11, but we heard nothing else opened at all? We were in the first gondola up, and went straight down grand-b. Groin deep powder, but was all tracked within the hour, and by then the rest of the area was already over-run. So, snow here is as good as elsewhere, but it cant take the crowds. We had a lift from our chalet - loris, so were queueing at 9ish but saw lots of crammed buses heading to the bubble, and again we heard that access was constrained later. |
Compagnie du Mont Blanc don't seem to be making much effort this year. How can they not manage to get something open at Le Tour, Brevent, GM - at least Pierre a Ric etc to give people some skiing?
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| BobinCH wrote: |
| baggyboy wrote: |
| Back to les h today. Nothing open until about 11, but we heard nothing else opened at all? We were in the first gondola up, and went straight down grand-b. Groin deep powder, but was all tracked within the hour, and by then the rest of the area was already over-run. So, snow here is as good as elsewhere, but it cant take the crowds. We had a lift from our chalet - loris, so were queueing at 9ish but saw lots of crammed buses heading to the bubble, and again we heard that access was constrained later. |
Compagnie du Mont Blanc don't seem to be making much effort this year. How can they not manage to get something open at Le Tour, Brevent, GM - at least Pierre a Ric etc to give people some skiing? |
It takes a while for those areas to stabilize and/or be avalanche controlled. It's not just the pistes that they have to worry about, if they open the lifts too many idiots will head out in to dangerous places. A few years ago they weren't so worried, maybe they cared less or maybe people used more sense, but these days if they open too soon people will kill themselves (and others) heading out in to easily accessed places (hotel face on Brevent, bowls to Vallorcine off Le Tour etc etc) and setting off slides that might threaten pistes.
As for Pierre á Ric, an avalanche was triggered by skiers in couloire Phillipe yesterday I think, I'm not sure if it hit the piste but it could have done.
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You'll get to see more forums and be part of the best ski club on the net.
You'll get to see more forums and be part of the best ski club on the net.
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St Gervais was acceptable yesterday, not too busy although the pow was pretty heavy for such shallow slopes. Courmeyeur today seemed the best bet, good snow and plenty of sunshine. Arp and Youla closed, but plenty to do in the trees. Interested to see what happens at GM tomoz.
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| BobinCH wrote: |
Compagnie du Mont Blanc don't seem to be making much effort this year. How can they not manage to get something open at Le Tour, Brevent, GM - at least Pierre a Ric etc to give people some skiing? |
exactly as Sah says avalanche risk!
have you seen the wind up high and what it does to the snow pack and freshly falling snow? 1metre can be perfect powder, then another metre to the side can be solid wind deposit that is waiting to take the whole hillsides snowpack with it.
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FAQ
