 Poster: A snowHead
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In retrospect, the Daioy Mail article wasn't that inaccurate was it? Problems applies more to France than Austria, but otherwise?
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Obviously A snowHead isn't a real person
Obviously A snowHead isn't a real person
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Well, to reach any conclusion on "a season" when for most resorts, which were never scheduled to be open at this point, it's not even begun, is crazy.
Much of Austria isn't doing well either - I have a niece and family off to St Anton at Christmas and they're very anxiously watching the runes. And some parts of Italy (up in the NW) are doing OK, but not some of the other major ski areas.
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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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You need to Login to know who's really who.
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Time was the pistes opened at best the week before Christmas, so around the middle of December at the earliest. Can't see what all the fuss is about to be honest.
I'll still go away for 3 weeks on the 20th and I'll ski. Have not yet NOT skied at Christmas in the 40+ years I've been skiing, and that includes a couple of Chrimbles up in Scotland!
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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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@Samerberg Sue, +1 im always going to ski its just variable for the amount of snow to cut through.. Im on rentals this yea so no worries ha
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@pam w,
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Well, to reach any conclusion on "a season" when for most resorts, which were never scheduled to be open at this point, it's not even begun, is crazy.
Much of Austria isn't doing well either
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The DM article never suggested there was any problem with the whole season, just that the start of the season in Austria was likely to be disrupted. It was a SH who said 'The season is doomed'. Does that make the DM more reliable and less crazy than Snowheads?
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You'll get to see more forums and be part of the best ski club on the net.
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To be honest, Daily Mail article quite restrained. If anything by focusing solely on Austria it missed a bigger story in that the French resorts, which attracts way more British visitors (and DM readers), suffering to at least the same extent.
Twelve days on from the story, it could be argued that the piece was overly optimistic with it's forecast of 12cm of upcoming snow, which has not materialised, to any great extent, in most resorts.
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Telegraph reporting on the story today, focusing on France rather than Austria.
"Thousands of British families were facing the prospect of disrupted Alpine ski breaks after poor snowfalls in major winter resorts.
Some of the France’s best-known mountains remained completely closed to skiers at the weekend while others were only able to open a handful of slopes.
In one area, locals claimed it had been the worst conditions at the start of a ski season for 40 years.
The lack of snow in the French Alps has already caused in the Alpine Skiing World Cup to be moved from the resort of Courchevel to Åre in Sweden in search of better conditions.
It came as skiing began in parts of the UK for the first time over the weekend, with one of Scotland’s biggest winter sport resorts seeing almost 1,000 people take to the slopes." (c) Daily Telegraph
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snowHeads are a friendly bunch.
snowHeads are a friendly bunch.
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Heh. Sorry folks, but I'm off to Tahoe, USA on Thursday. Where it has just booted it down, and carrying on dusting this week.
WOOOOOOOOOOOOOOHOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO!!!
Sorry. That probably wasn't very helpful.
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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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Hi,
Does anyone know whether there is any snow in Les Houches?
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You know it makes sense.
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@marta, not ao much lower down but from the motorway it looks as though they've been making a reasonable job of making it higher up.
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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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Back to the original point about the season being doomed....... I've heard people say that if we don't get a decent base layed down very soon then that will be very bad news for the season as a whole. Any truth in this? How important is a good, early base?
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Poster: A snowHead
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@foxtrotzulu, I think it's a myth. At least these days as far as piste snow goes. It gets so compacted by grooming. Off piste a different story.
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Obviously A snowHead isn't a real person
Obviously A snowHead isn't a real person
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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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@boredsurfin, It is a bit mean of the Daily Mail posting a summer library photo of Les Arcs.  You'd think they could post a photo from a webcam somewhere. The reality probably isn't great but there is probably a bit of snow there.
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According to the resort website, 9 out of 107 runs open today.
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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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doesn't really matter when the base comes, so long as it comes before you go on holiday!
off piste, how the base forms is relevant to the stability of the snowpack - a nice stable base can set up relatively safe conditions for the whole season and vice versa
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| Quote: |
doesn't really matter when the base comes, so long as it comes before you go on holiday!
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+1 starting to run close to the wire now for me
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| Arno wrote: |
doesn't really matter when the base comes, so long as it comes before you go on holiday!
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Id' say you need a decent base before the ground starts to warm up in March though!!
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it's warming up this week and next though
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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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@Little Martin, depends where, forecast for colder in Chamonix
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So question for those who've been skiing for years how bad is it actually looking compared to other years? I know this has no bearing on how the season will progress but just as a point of interest.
I started skiing back in 2009 and due to there being a few teachers on the trip went Christmas week to La Rosiere travelling on Boxing day. This is before I knew of Snowheads etc, and the thought of whether there'd be snow or not never crossed my mind! It wasn't until we got there that the chalet host showed us pictures from just three days earlier where the home run was green and muddy! It then dumped and dumped most of the week we were there-I've probably not seen as much snow since in a week!
I'm of the opinion that as someone who gets to skis 2-3 weeks a season (if I'm lucky) that I just get what I get when I turn up.
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snowHeads are a friendly bunch.
snowHeads are a friendly bunch.
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| Bene wrote: |
| So question for those who've been skiing for years how bad is it actually looking compared to other years? |
It varies with altitude. Highest slopes are generally OK, I've had three weeks of excellent skiing already this season, Tignes, Zermatt and Val Thorens. Perfect piste conditions and even some decent powder skiing (although on a thin base). Lower down, however, it's the worst I've known it. The majority of pistes have insufficient or no snow on them (where I am, in the Tarentaise). It's just been way too warm during December and the last two weeks of November.
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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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I recall seeing pics of Christmas weeks of white strips surrounded by green/brown many, many years ago...but don't ask me what year 
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Isn't Austria too low for much snow anyway ?
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You know it makes sense.
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| kitenski wrote: |
| Arno wrote: |
doesn't really matter when the base comes, so long as it comes before you go on holiday!
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Id' say you need a decent base before the ground starts to warm up in March though!! |
my first trip is end Jan so yes, obviously
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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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I remember going walking at 1600m on grassy pistes on Xmas day around 1985/6. Obviously I was just a wee boy in those days.......ahem.
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Poster: A snowHead
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@zzz, you mean you're taller now?
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Obviously A snowHead isn't a real person
Obviously A snowHead isn't a real person
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| Tarquin wrote: |
| Isn't Austria too low for much snow anyway ? |
Much of the country is actually below sea level (well the Mittelmeer anyhow). In Peter Jackson's movie of Lord of the Rings the Mines of Moria sequences were actually filmed on Austrian ski slopes with the rock faces added in later via CGI.
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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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@under a new name, definitely taller than you!
But obviously don't understand Scottish very well.
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You need to Login to know who's really who.
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I think recent years have been better than I've probably realised, but having been skiing intermittently for nearly forty years  I have seen too many seasons when the real snow didn't arrive until well into January. It's been skiable earlier but I would never, ever think of booking going earlier than about 15 January. This season is certainly the worst that I can remember but as I never expect much snow yet I'm not massively surprised.
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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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Its exactly a month till we go to Tignes Les Brev. I'm probably stupidly starting to worry. I really do feel for those going over Christmas. First time with the OH too and me not having been since 2010 when I when I went late March and said I wouldn't go that late again due to no fresh snow and it getting sticky/slushy in the afternoons. Maybe Mid January wasn't as safe a bet as I thought it would be! 
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Thing is most people tend to forget. This might be the worst start to a season for a few years. Not the worst in living memory.
Only a few years ago (might have been 2007 ?) there was a dusting topped up by frantic snowcannons to get something for Christmas, then rain. Christmas guys were lucky to see a bit of white. New Year guys had to watch all the white wash away leaving white circles under the snow cannons.
I arrived for 1st proper week in Jan to see almost all of the PdS green. Totally green. It started dumping on the Tuesday, fortunately.
But then I can remember that year of grass in January, and haven't experienced this season yet. Maybe there's even less snow than just grass?
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@andy I wasn't here in 07 but locals describe it like you did. Complete rubbish. WTO ski race at La Tour\Cham cancelled due to lack of snow.
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@andy I wasn't here in 07 but locals describe it like you did. Complete rubbish. WTO ski race at La Tour\Cham cancelled due to lack of snow in Feb .
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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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December 2007 was OK in Les Arcs, a reasonable amount of early snow which then lasted until Christmas and New Year through a relatively dry spell. Christmas week saw most of the pistes open, including down to the lower villages, with firm piste conditions and thin, tracked out off-piste. Not ideal but way better than we have now, with the exception of the highest slopes.
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Oh dear, my ex-wife is heading to Les Arcs this weekend.
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