Snowmageddon en route to ski resorts

A snowHead

We finally got into resort around 3, 3.30ish in the morning. Thanks to finding our way around most of the auto route blockages and a 4x4 with chains we were told we were the first in for several hours. I feel for the staff having to deal with such a horrendous situation most of them seem to have been without sleep for many hours!

A snowHead

Drove to st luc today. 0 traffic, 0 queues, only chains were on the cars of the nervous dutch lads. My car is an ancient rear wheel drive bmw, with winter tyres and no issue at all. Moral of the story is france sucks, Switzerland rules na ne na neee na na.

Well, the person's real but it's just a made up name, see?

@coddlesangers, I think St Luc had half the snowfall of the Savoie yesterday, so that might have accounted for some of the ease you had in getting to resort today.

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We were in a similar situation a few years ago in Moutiers, but because it was a Weds or Thurs, the volume of traffic was not so high. We found snow socks completely useless, and were luckily able to buy chains that fit in one of the petrol stations between Albertville & Moutiers. Am heading out next week (would never arrive or dep on a Saturday!), and will as usual have sleeping bags, food and drinks in the car just in case...

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@shawaszk, and you have your chains, right

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@FIRSTOFTHEGIANTS,

Even if you had got the Eurostar you would have been nearly as badly snookered as you would have been sitting in the train station for hours waiting for a transport up the mountain.

I have winter tyres, proper branded Autosocks and chains. I only have the chains just in case a situation like last night when the Gendarmerie might refuse to let you up the hill. I've always found auto socks to be as good and much easier to use, as you say.

Winter tyres are useful in the UK as well. I wouldn't drive down to the alps without them. Lost count of the times where driven across France at night with snow blowing thanking everything for winter tyres.

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@FIRSTOFTHEGIANTS, really, don't worry. The last day or so has been truly exceptional. When and where are you travelling? We just love the horror stories of "snowmageddon" especially when we can do the "old hands laughing at people who don't know how to use snowchains" bit. Next Saturday will be a busy transfer day down from resorts, then it'll be far quietr for some weeks. And theere is no big snow event on the radar at the moment.

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@Hyst - you betcha! Smile

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Agree about the winter tyres - have been able to drive uphill on snow covered roads with no problems on gradients that with summer tyres I would have had to use chains - definitely worth getting if you intend to keep the car for a few years and intend to drive to ski resorts as may avoid the faff of putting on chains for just a short final drive up an uncleared road off the main road eg eg to get to a chalet.

Still on the road to valliore and finally gave up after 48 hours on the go. Spent last night in emergency accommodation South of Chambery only to get within 20k of resort and get stuck with in another 4 hour standstill. Currently in a hotel in Le Chambre and will try again in the morning. Has been the worst journey in a long time and all because my wife wanted to stop over night at Reimes.

You know it makes sense.

My favourite moment today was a guy driving far too slowly having not had the wit to clear his rear window or his wing mirrors. He was not only driving very slowly (10 mph max) on a road where overtaking was difficult in the conditions, but also wandering out into the middle of the road from time to time for no good reason. We particularly enjoyed the moments when the road was very clear in the middle so a driver with any sense would have kept his nearside on the snow bit, as he still had chains on. Monsier 73 behind him, two cars ahead of me, was flashing mercilessly but the guy couldn't see. You could envisage the steam coming from the ears of Monsieur 73 - but he was not daft enough to try to overtake and it was ages before we got past. I routinely drive mountain roads much slower than the locals but I pull over and signal wherever possible to let them steam past.

Otherwise you'll just go on seeing the one name:

Also - would always drive rather than fly because the worst of it last night was people relying on TOs - some of whose customers (Crystal, anyone??) are stuck in hospitals and gymnasiums emergency accommodation, completely reliant on the TO to organise stuff, and judging by the Facebook comments, TOs have forgotten where they are.... At least if you drive you can read the weather forecast and make a decision yourself to duck out of the jams and stay the night in Lyon etc ...

A snowHead

@drunken rock monkey, that sounds horrendous. Sympathies. But at least you have someone to blame.... When I drive I decixde when, and whether, to stop.

A snowHead

Well, the person's real but it's just a made up name, see?

The weather forecast has been very accurate (yesterdays' weather was predicted at least a week ahead - completely foreseeable ) Ccheck the expected conditions so you can be prepared and amend your journey if necessary. Good luck!

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@FIRSTOFTHEGIANTS, Morzine is not a tricky drive, you should be fine but, as you say, keep an eye on the forecasts.

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Snow socks? Saw lots of them hanging off wheels, flailing around and in a mushy heap in the road. Maybe OK for getting out of a car park, but they don't seem to survive 50 miles of compulsory use on bumpy ice or mushy Tarmac. After yesterday, I'm sticking (literally) with my RUD chains. Awesome.

I write this to add to the corporate knowledge base and not to gloat. We were very lucky.
Left home at 1500 on Boxing Day and caught Eurostar from Ashford. Arrived at 2010 and crossed Paris for a meal outside Gare d'Austerlitz. In bed on train to Bourg at 2230. Awoke at 0800 in Moutiers and arrived Bourg at 0845, 1 hour late. Taxi met us and made it to just short of St. Foy where we turned back as traffic to Tignes was stationary. Retraced our route for 400 metres and stopped. Transferred into empty taxi going to Tignes. Slow progress and lots of initiative from our driver got us to Tignes at 1200 on 27 Dec, 3 hours later than due. As I say, we were very lucky.
But what amazed me was the lack of initiative from the French police, the stupidity of drivers without chains or winter tyres and the crass driving of many.
Also, this weather was expected so no more criticism of the UK when transport grinds to a halt when it snows. The same happens on the continent.
I hope those that we're not as fortunate as us are now safely at their destinations.

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Your posting lives up to your name @FionaTwice Very Happy

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Some problems again tonight by the sound of it. Just had someone arrive at hotel who had taken 3 hours from Moutiers to Bourg.

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Very glad I no longer drive transfer Wink

if my choice for this trip had been picked, we'd have probably been stuck heading from Grenoble to La Plagne today. however, we decided on Austria, so I'm comfortably in my hotel in St Johann Im Pongau. good luck to all the Snowheads still plowing their way through the French Alps

You know it makes sense.

Saturday 7.30 am plan to leave Tignes le lac on ski world coach
9.15 am eventually leave Tignes
Arrive bourg at 7pm
Leave bourg 7.45 pm (told we're all going on ferry)
Arrive Moutiers @ 2 am in the morning sunday
Arrive hotel outside Lyon 5.45am
Dep Lyon 10.15 am
Just docked at Dover 21.45 uk time !

Otherwise you'll just go on seeing the one name:

@notnats,

A snowHead

A snowHead

Well, the person's real but it's just a made up name, see?

One driver did the Tignes to Moutiers marathon but there was no choice due to the carnage! Another bloke took us to the hotel near Lyon, then a new coach arrived this morning with 2 drivers who drove in shifts and still are as we are on our way to gatwick. The ski world rep legged it at Lyon so a couple of guys on the coach had to do all the comms with ski world over the phone to arrange the ferry etc!

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Yes, on our way to get cars at the airport and complete final leg of journey, hopefully 75 minutes tops to hackney. 32 hours behind schedule!

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Wowser, you might be in line for the Snowheads "Transfer Day from Hell" award at this rate.

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We drove back from Valfrejus yesterday morning- I must admit I had no sense of the size of the problems people have been facing until I read this thread Embarassed

We awoke at 6am to find heavy snow in the resort (1500m) for the first time since we arrived on the 20th December. The car was already packed and ready for a quick getaway, as we had been warned to expect snow from around 10am. By the time the kids were rounded up and last few bits of packing completed it was 6.30am and I found the snow was lying around 5-6 inches. I decided to put the chains on as I have never driven in such heavy snow before, and although my car is wearing its winter shoes at the moment I figured belt and braces was best. After 45 minutes of faffing with the chains I gave up, they just would not go on despite being the same tyres and wheel size as last year. By the time we set off at 7.20am a further couple of inches had fallen, and we decided to go sooner rather than later whilst the roads were still quiet.

We quickly caught up to a French registered car which was inching down the mountain pass from Valfrejus to Modane. The car in front was going very slowly, braking heavily, skidding and being slightly out of control, however we tucked in behind and followed at a safe distance, much to the annoyance of a couple of locals who flew past us on one of the hairpin bends Shocked

Figuring that the snow would probably have died out by the time we got to the valley floor, and certainly the autoroute was bound to be swept clear, we pressed on slowly for the 5 miles or so from resort to civilisation, eventually passing the slow car in front when he started to go the wrong way down a slip road. The winter tyres on my car behaved themselves very well in the heavy snow with no skidding, wheel spinning or sliding, and thankfully chains were not required. The snow didn't let up though, and the autoroute was exciting to say the least. The first toll booth seemed to have around a foot of snow on the uncompacted areas, but there was enough traffic passing through to level off most of lane 1 making it passable. A couple of brave souls ventured in to lane 2 to overtake, but I was having difficulty keeping the windscreen clear of ice on the outside and steaming up on the inside, so we drove conservatively. I was glad to reach the first long road tunnel, which was just long enough and warm enough to be able to clear the build up of ice from the windscreen . It took us around 3.5 hours to get to the far side of the toll booths at Chambery (I think), but once through had a fairly clear run back up to Calais and even managed to get a train two hours earlier than booked Very Happy

We remarked that the southbound traffic was heavy and slow, but it didn't occur that such dreadful delays would happen, we were more annoyed that we were missing all the lovely fresh snow, and had even thought about going back to the resort to get another days skiing in- as it turns out, the resort closed early on Saturday afternoon due to high winds so we dodged a bullet there
Very Happy

Hope everyone has eventually managed to reach their destinations, and the awful journeys will be compensated for by some fantastic skiing conditions in the coming days snowHead

@M535man, thanks - really useful insight!

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Snowforcast is predicting 'moderste' snow again next Saturday, hurrah! Self-drivers, I would get out of there EARLY on Saturday morning, or preferably leave Friday night and stop over when you get past Lyon. I can recommend a very nice B&B near Chalon if anyone wants it - http://www.theolddoctorshouse.com

Whether it snows or not, the roads will be busy - don't hang about until 10am and then leave at the same time as everyone else.

Help!!

Snowmageddon en route to ski resorts

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