 Poster: A snowHead
|
|
They largely make the mounds of snow overnight, but the pisting is done in the evening, so they sit there until the following evening. We have encountered these mounds on lots of the lower runs all season. They do not appear to have a second morning pisting shift here, unlike some resorts.
|
|
|
|
|
|
Obviously A snowHead isn't a real person
Obviously A snowHead isn't a real person
|
|
They normally leave them in piles until they are ‘required’ - they have thermal mass in a pile and are much less likely to melt than if spread on a piste - when the bare patches show through they move them around. Normally only takes a day or so but I’ve seen some there for a full week before.
|
|
|
|
|
|
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?
|
@chopkins13, A possibility, but in the Dolomites I never seen piles blocking the pistes on the scale we have here, and they are much more snow cannon dependent
.
|
|
|
|
|
|
You need to Login to know who's really who.
You need to Login to know who's really who.
|
|
Well, been snowing pretty much all day. We were treated to some blues skies around lunchtime, but we've dived into the Arpette restaurant now as the weather has really turned in on us with very low visibility and wind driven snow.
|
|
|
|
|
|
Anyway, snowHeads is much more fun if you do.
Anyway, snowHeads is much more fun if you do.
|
|
Fine days skiing, some fresh, about 20cm down at Montvilliers this morning. Closed in later, had a drive back to the chalet in a full scale blizzard max 20mph driving. Hopefully lots of snow overnight but it will mean lots of snow clearing!
|
|
|
|
|
|
You'll need to Register first of course.
You'll need to Register first of course.
|
Superb day with blue skies for most of it. Pistes are chopped up pretty badly, but fingers crossed the bashers get out tonight. 
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Only got out for the afternoon, had loads of snow clearing duties first! Excellent time, took fat skis and played in lots of powder. Generally everything lovely, but strange how the bottom of the run down to Roches is still scraped and horrible!
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
@RobinS, If its bad now, just imagine what its going to be like during the February school holidays 
|
|
|
|
|
|
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.
|
Evening all. Any recommendations for the best runs to take my son above montalbert? He is five and will be doing his third week - last year we got him to the point where he could ski blues but we still need to be careful with him
Also any recommendations for bars/cafes in montalbert?
Have been Reading the crappy news about envers - looking at the map we will need to ski to roche and then telemetro to get about PC?
Thanks all (in advance)
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
@nick0861, you don’t need the telemetro to get to PC, you can ski straight down.
|
|
|
|
|
|
snowHeads are a friendly bunch.
snowHeads are a friendly bunch.
|
|
@nick0861, in all reality it could easily take 25-30 mins to ski down from the top of the Montablert Gondola with an average 5 year old by the time they’ve fallen over a bit, stopped to look at the carvings, been pulled along a flat bit where they didn’t carry enough speed etc. The blues down to Montalbert are all great and lots of different ways down to keep them entertained, so in theory you may never NEED to go anywhere near Plagne Centre. However @Charliee, is right, once in the La Roche lift then it’s a fairly easy ski down from 2000 in to Plagne Centre. Be warned though, the last 500 yards down to La Roche can be an absolute nightmare - it bottlenecks into a narrow cat track that was never meant to carry thousands of skiers a day and as a result is almost always a sheet of ice with overcrowding issues - not the sort of place I’d rush to take a 5 year old. That said, if you’re going on a quiet week and there’s plenty of fresh snow then it may be just fine - perhaps one parent could do a quick loop up La Roche and test it out before you go for it with the little one. I’m sure you’ll love Montalbert, some absolutely lovely skiing for all abilities in the trees above and a nice restaurant half way down which is great on a sunny day. Enjoy!
|
|
|
|
|
|
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.
|
Thanks. If we did take him up to PC it would be lunchtime so I guess it may not be as bad then as the end of the day when people making their way back?
to ski back to Montalbert then it looks like best option would be up becoin and then can get down on blues pavane/golf/cornegiduoille and then up Andrews?
Would that be the best route?
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Adrets now Andrews!
|
|
|
|
|
|
You know it makes sense.
|
|
@nick0861, Either that, or down to the 1800, which also links to the easy blues back to Montalbert. Tip, from the top of 1800 loop down below the bottom of Golf rather than above it, avoids the steepest iciest section of the run to Adrets.
|
|
|
|
|
|
Otherwise you'll just go on seeing the one name:
Otherwise you'll just go on seeing the one name:
|
|
Any recommendations for best local weather forecast for the area? Heading out at the weekend and 20 years since I was last in the area - happy days!!
|
|
|
|
|
|
Poster: A snowHead
|
|
I use the Meteo Ski app, weather info is from Meteo France, and gives local info as well.
|
|
|
|
|
|
Obviously A snowHead isn't a real person
Obviously A snowHead isn't a real person
|
|
|
|
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?
|
|
Thanks guys that really helpful. I seem to remember last year one of the blue runs having a really grim uphill bit which was a bit of a climb/walk. Can anyone remind me where that is and how it can be avoided?
|
|
|
|
|
|
You need to Login to know who's really who.
You need to Login to know who's really who.
|
|
@Dashed, if your French is up to it, radio la plagne (internet) is a good source. If it's like r Les arcs they have an English forecast at 8.40 am but the live piste reports are all in French.
|
|
|
|
|
|
Anyway, snowHeads is much more fun if you do.
Anyway, snowHeads is much more fun if you do.
|
| nick0861 wrote: |
| Thanks guys that really helpful. I seem to remember last year one of the blue runs having a really grim uphill bit which was a bit of a climb/walk. Can anyone remind me where that is and how it can be avoided? |
Possibly Pravendue towards Montalbert. Avoided by taking the Adrets chair
|
|
|
|
|
|
You'll need to Register first of course.
You'll need to Register first of course.
|
| nick0861 wrote: |
| Thanks guys that really helpful. I seem to remember last year one of the blue runs having a really grim uphill bit which was a bit of a climb/walk. Can anyone remind me where that is and how it can be avoided? |
Yes, Pravendue towards Montalbert. Carry on down to La Roche.
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Loads of snow overnight again, but looks like it's going to be with us for most of the day too, so poor visibility 
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Lots of lifts shut first thing but slowly opened up, although some seemed to stay shut. Great morning in falling snow but good visibility, and sunny afternoon.
|
|
|
|
|
|
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.
|
We are having a cracking time in La Plagne. Arrived Sunday with 30cm of snow overnight. Beautiful day Monday. Pistes in good conditions although by end of day new stuff had scrapped away to reveal some rather hardpacked/icy sections in the bottle necks. Another beautiful day Tuesday and we skied over to Les Arcs. Snow was lovely although lots of people. Really enjoyed the red down from grand col.
This morning another load of snow and visibility was poor. Didn’t even think about heading out until we could see the chair lift moving in front of our chalet. Out at 12 and so was the sun  stayed low and had a fab time skiing the reds over at Roche and Montalbert. Really enjoying our trip so far.
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
We were over in La Plagne on the Les Coches side today. Sad news about the pisteur that was in the avalanche. We saw the helis flying around. Heard about what happened a bit later. I am very pleased we did not go up to the Roche de Mio now. I really hope he is OK and my thought are with everyone that works with him and his family.
The pisteurs where we were only let those with full avalanche gear go round the fence. Good to see them being pro active like that even in a reasonably safe area.
|
|
|
|
|
|
snowHeads are a friendly bunch.
snowHeads are a friendly bunch.
|
I saw the heli but had no idea about the accident. That’s really sad 
|
|
|
|
|
|
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.
|
From http://pistehors.com/2i94oGgBB8B6DbBQAJc1/piste-patroller-caught-by-avalanche-at-la-plagne
A piste patroller has been killed by an avalanche at la Plagne in the early afternoon today. The pisteur was checking the slope with a colleague in the Bourtes/Mio sector when he was taken around 300 meters by the slide and buried. Mountain rescue from Modane and Albertville were dispatched to the scene by helicopter. On their arrival the victim had been recovered by his colleague in a state of cardio-vascular arrest. The victim had been under the snow for around 10 minutes. He was evacuated by helicopter to Grenoble where the 54 year old succumbed to his injuries.
The avalanche risk was Considerable 3/5 with half a meter of fresh snow falling in the previous 48 hours accompanied by strong winds from the West and North-West.
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Horrible news, really makes you stop and appreciate where your lift pass money goes and the people who put themselves at risk just so we can have a good time in what might otherwise be a dangerous environment.
Any idea which piste it was?
|
|
|
|
|
|
You know it makes sense.
|
Very sad news about the pisteur, just remember this is a dangerous environment.
We had a few hours out today, no off piste as it was level 4, but we did lots of the lower level unpisted routes, fantastic time, and everything is in the best condition of the season so far.
|
|
|
|
|
|
Otherwise you'll just go on seeing the one name:
Otherwise you'll just go on seeing the one name:
|
@chopkins13, I assume... it was off piste in the Roche de Mio area. La Plagne rarely drops avalanches across Pistes,
although over the years, I have seen them do it below Becoin. Opposite the top of Blanchette and to one side of Sources piste.
If you look carefully below the Verdons Nord lift as you head to the first ridge you can often see small avalanches, look near the top of the slide and quite often you will see two sets of ski tracks where the pastures have skied up and I assume, lobbed some sort of explosive to make it slide. Very skilled to make it slide at the right point so it doesn't collect enough power to take out the lift pylon!
|
|
|
|
|
|
Poster: A snowHead
|
|
Another great day. Snowing this morning but then the sun came out. Windy up high so we stayed lower down. Snow in fantastic condition and we had some fun just cruising the blues. Light went flat about 4 and it is snowing now. Cannot complain at all. The snow gods have been good to us!
|
|
|
|
|
|
Obviously A snowHead isn't a real person
Obviously A snowHead isn't a real person
|
fascinating. id love to know more about the day to day running of a ski resort! the pisteurs, the explosions, the cannons, lifts operation, mountain rescue etc etc.
are there any good docco's knocking about?
|
|
|
|
|
|
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?
|
|
I put a link on the Innsbruck thread - it's only a written piece but it covers some areas you are interested in.
|
|
|
|
|
|
You need to Login to know who's really who.
You need to Login to know who's really who.
|
@randywatson, Occasionally in La Plagne there are tours of the snow making factories (Theres 3 of them) and the iPad (yep really) that controls it all bookable through the tourist offices. Usually on off peak weeks when the weather is OK
Also check out La Plagne's You Tube channel, there are some pretty good videos of 'behind the scenes' stuff on there.
|
|
|
|
|
|
Anyway, snowHeads is much more fun if you do.
Anyway, snowHeads is much more fun if you do.
|
|
@boredsurfin, what are these snow making factories you talk of?!
|
|
|
|
|
|
You'll need to Register first of course.
You'll need to Register first of course.
|
@chopkins13, Where they make the snow! Montalbert's is just below the top station of the gondola just near the lake 
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
cool thanks. cant find any linky on any Innsbrucky thread tho...
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
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.
|
|
Loads of fresh snow again this morning. Avalanche risk high, don't go off piste, or down a closed piste unless you REALLY know what you are doing. (And read the avalanche bulletin first).
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Not such an enjoyable ski today. Probably where I’m getting tired. Light a bit too flat in places and I struggled to spot the moguls. Ended up skiing a bit too defensive. Good news is I could start my apres ski early and I was much more successful at that. Looking forward to tomorrow. Will be our last day and hoping it will be quieter!
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
FAQ
