 Poster: A snowHead
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Obviously A snowHead isn't a real person
Obviously A snowHead isn't a real person
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@Russbost, interesting to hear the real km figure for Serre Chevalier. Do you have access to the rest of the Schrahe data too?
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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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Mount Etna is often red hot
Last edited by Well, the person's real but it's just a made up name, see? on Sun 25-03-18 18:12; edited 1 time in total
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You need to Login to know who's really who.
You need to Login to know who's really who.
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Dolomites
Not many chalets so book early.
IMHO after several visits Arraba is the place to stay.
The Hotel Malita is well situated and was well run when I stayed there some years back.
http://www.hotelmalita.it/en/Default.asp
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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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St Moritz, in southern Switzerland.
Gets around 300 days of sun per year.
High enough for its ski season to last reliably from Dec to Apr.
No other resort gets close for a sun-snow combo in the whole European Alps.
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You'll need to Register first of course.
You'll need to Register first of course.
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Funny how Google searches always take me back here. I'm looking for the same. This past trip to Saas-Fee... I also read the 300 days of sunshine comment... and yet we saw, 1 1/2 days of the 7-8 nights we stayed there?
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| Russbost wrote: |
| Hmm - don't think I'd fancy booking a long way ahead for the Pyrenees, snow is somewhat unpredictable |
Is it? Grandvalira seems to have a great snow record.
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La Rosiere has to be close to the top of any list, always in the top 5 French ski stations for depth of snow and the majority of pistes south or south-west facing, the new Mont Valaisan sector means a top altitude of 2800 metres and five pistes, as well as opening up a huge off-piste domaine. With the link to Italy on the same lift pass you get access to a mainly north facing area and a really varied ski area.
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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 Moritz or the Dolomites
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@Russbost,
Fundamentally you are trying to game the un-gameable. Anywhere where you are so very much more likely to get sunshine for one random week of the season is not - by definition - going to have very good snow (although the definition of that is very much also open to debate).
And even if it did exist you could easily just get unlucky (or very unlucky).
So you want - IMV - to mitigate the flat light problem - which means having access to tree skiing - and finding (?) the optimal goggle lens (typically yellow/orange) for your eyes. I use Smith Blue Sol-X (I think - can't find the description online) and their "Chromapop" technology is looking very interesting as an upgrade.
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snowHeads are a friendly bunch.
snowHeads are a friendly bunch.
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| Quote: |
Fundamentally you are trying to game the un-gameable
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This. In the northern French alps the weeks of clear blue skies are generally the result of solid high pressure which blocks the lows rolling in from the Atlantic. Pistes will typically be hard and shiny and off-piste unskiable for most of us. Those conditions can happen at any time. Your best bet for finding them is to look at low season weeks (e.g. January after new year) then look for a last minute booking. Some of the longest periods of that kind of weather I've had in many, many, weeks of living in that area have been in January - no less likely than any other time of year.
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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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Easter rather than Christmas
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| under a new name wrote: |
| So you want - IMV - to mitigate the flat light problem - which means having access to tree skiing |
This.
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You know it makes sense.
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Yes sun days and good natural snowfall tends to have an inverse relationship.
Just like the UK, the north western alps are usually the snowiestarea whilst the south east is sunnier and drier. This is because of exposure (or shelter) to westerly and northerly air streams which tend to bring the predominant snow falls.
The Dolomites are the ‘Kent’ of the Alps whilst the Portes du Soliel are the 'Grey Corries', with Avoriaz recording one of the heaviest annual snowfalls in the alps.
A remarkable 8 out of 10 days are sunny in the Dolomites but that is not great news for natural snowfall which is erratic most years. However the clear, dry air of the Dolomites (and the terrain) is particularly suitable for making snow and holding onto it.
Alternatively, as many here have already remarked, if you want deep natural snow and strong sun, go high and go late.
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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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That's why St Moritz wins.
Italian sun.
Swiss snow.
Village sits on a big, high, sunny plateau.
Nowhere else in Western Europe gets close to that 3way combo.
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Poster: A snowHead
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| Whitegold wrote: |
That's why St Moritz wins.
Italian sun.
Swiss snow.
Village sits on a big, high, sunny plateau.
Nowhere else in Western Europe gets close to that 3way combo. |
stupid overgeneralisation. What about Courmayer - you can add super food to that list of St Moritz
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Obviously A snowHead isn't a real person
Obviously A snowHead isn't a real person
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| ItaloSkier wrote: |
| I also read the 300 days of sunshine comment... and yet we saw, 1 1/2 days of the 7-8 nights we stayed there? |
I wouldn't expect to see much sunshine in 7-8 nights. Would need Arctic Circle for that.
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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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| Orange200 wrote: |
| ItaloSkier wrote: |
| I also read the 300 days of sunshine comment... and yet we saw, 1 1/2 days of the 7-8 nights we stayed there? |
I wouldn't expect to see much sunshine in 7-8 nights. Would need Arctic Circle for that. |
I kept squinting to see the northern lights but that didn't seem to work. Appenzeller was more effective, though.
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You need to Login to know who's really who.
You need to Login to know who's really who.
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We went to Sweden (end of Jan) for a week some years ago and it was sunny every day, we returned the following year for a fortnight at the same time, it was windy so the lift next to where we were staying was not running and it pretty much rained every day, you just can't predict winter weather.
I have been to California at the end of January more than a dozen times and whilst this is outside of your scope I have never been disappointed with the sunshine, I have only been disappointed with the snow once.
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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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Of course the sun and the snow are not very good friends... Serre-chevalier would be the best compromise in my opinion.
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You'll need to Register first of course.
You'll need to Register first of course.
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| mooney058 wrote: |
| Whitegold wrote: |
That's why St Moritz wins.
Italian sun.
Swiss snow.
Village sits on a big, high, sunny plateau.
Nowhere else in Western Europe gets close to that 3way combo. |
stupid overgeneralisation. What about Courmayer - you can add super food to that list of St Moritz |
Courmayeur is less sunny.
Serve Chevalier is lower.
St Moritz has everything.
Sun + snow + height + food + luxury.
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@proskilab, why S-C over anywhere else?
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| Whitegold wrote: |
| mooney058 wrote: |
| Whitegold wrote: |
That's why St Moritz wins.
Italian sun.
Swiss snow.
Village sits on a big, high, sunny plateau.
Nowhere else in Western Europe gets close to that 3way combo. |
stupid overgeneralisation. What about Courmayer - you can add super food to that list of St Moritz |
Courmayeur is less sunny.
Serve Chevalier is lower.
St Moritz has everything.
Sun + snow + height + food + luxury. |
How many times have you been to Courmayeur?
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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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Yep, and clouds below if you take the new panoramic lift to Vallee Blanche next to MontBlanc - included in the pass, not high enough?
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snowHeads are a friendly bunch.
snowHeads are a friendly bunch.
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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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Try Davos
Sunshine or your money back offer.
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We booked Montgenevre - from everything we have heard sun + good chances of snow since the base sits at 1860 meters, higher than our last trip to Saas Fee but a better chance of sunny weather.
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You know it makes sense.
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Of course! Isola 2000 is effectively in the Pyrenees 
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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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Sunshine Village? The clue is in the name...
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Poster: A snowHead
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| Orange200 wrote: |
| Sunshine Village? The clue is in the name... |
Ditto: 'Sunnyside' (Glenshee), 'Sunset Boulevard', (Yad Moss) and 'Sundowner' (Raise), though they do sometimes fail on the second criteria 
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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’m a sucker for marketing
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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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NOT Mayrhofen, Zillertal, Zell-am-Ziller, Bad Gastein, Bad Hofgastein, Gastein Valley. Typical week in March has 1-3 sunny days. Terrible fog is not uncommon.
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You need to Login to know who's really who.
You need to Login to know who's really who.
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I tend to agree with @underanewname that generally you are going to find one or the other. Even if you find somewhere that has a disproportionately high percent of good snow and sunny days, it's by no means a guarantee. For that reason it makes sense to focus on how to make the most of flat light days:
- proper goggle lens makes a huge difference. I can't overstate this. Oakley prizm lens get very good reviews, but I'm sure you can find some others.
- as others have said below treeline helps. I would go one step further and say get in the trees. Who doesn't like a bit of glade skiing and only the very worst whiteout will spoil your view in there.
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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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Well this thread got a random bump - still it replaces one of the thousand covid threads so all good.
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FAQ
Would happily go back to the Dolomites if we could find somewhere to stay that suited, would happily use a hotel rather than chalet if everything else fits ..............
