 Poster: A snowHead
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Have flight booked to Zurich on the 1st April. Any other suggestions or advice regarding the options I have identified below?
Engelberg
+ 2.5 hours from airport by train - only 1 change
+ Glacier - with majority of skiing on Titlis 1800-3000?
- Only 80+ km and how much will be skiable then
- No nearby resorts to try
Andermatt
+ 2.5 hours by train
+ Slopes to 1900m
+ Disentis nearby which should still be high enough
- Very small area and potentially tough if cover isnt good - reports of very rocky runs if snow poor
Davos
+ 2 hours by train
+ Largish area
- 3 of the sectors will already be closed
- Only to 2800m so how much skiing will be open assuming only safe above 2000 then?
Nothing else nearby seems high enough given the current warm weather?
Ignoring St Anton as seems to be very warm and heard reports of bare patches on lower slopes already
Ignoring St Moritz as too far for 4 days only
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Obviously A snowHead isn't a real person
Obviously A snowHead isn't a real person
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Have a look at Flims/Laax. Not sure what it will be like, but there is a glacier there.
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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 ideal, but skiable. There's a decent number of slopes at or above the Crap Sogn Gion level.
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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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| agavin wrote: |
| Ignoring St Anton as seems to be very warm and heard reports of bare patches on lower slopes already |
It's clear the lower slopes will suffer but the weather is due to get a bit colder and ca 15-20cm is forecast above 2000m in the next few days. St Anton is that big that even when the lower slopes are bad there's still plenty enough terrain to play about on. A lot less people will be there after Easter too.
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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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Flims/Laax has quite a lot of south-east south-west facing slopes so it's not ideal. The glacier is quite small.
I'd probably go for Engelberg, but get up early to avoid queues.
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You'll need to Register first of course.
You'll need to Register first of course.
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agavin, I'm off to Zurich tomorrow to do exactly what you're planning in April...
A mate that lives out there has suggested Engelberg, Flims-Laax, Davos and Meiringen-Hasliberg-Axalp. The difference to you is that we have a car, which makes some of the resorts that are further afield more accessible. Apparently, Davos was "wet and sticky" last saturday so I hate to think what it's like now.
Still, I'm well looking forward to it... 
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Since we'll be based on a floor in Baden, we'll be driving to a different resort each day so if anyone has any other suggestions to try please feel free... 
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Thanks for the feedback.
Had a look at Flims Laax, and some of the cameras at 2000-2500 were showing quite a bit of wear - and following DG's comments about orientation, have written that off - unless there is a big dump 
DB, what is the orientation of the upper slopes at St. Anton? I may be wrong, but it appears that St Anton only goes up to around 2600? How much vertical are you talking about still being skiable in St Anton assuming 'not too hot' spring weather?
David Goldsmith, Everything keeps coming back to this - you mention queues though which is a concern - is this just the bottleneck of getting up to the glacier - or would you expect the slopes to be crowded as well?
I'm taking no enthusiastic comments on Andermatt as a sign that I have probably rightly summed it up myself as potentially too limiting and dodgy.
No comments on the suitability of Davos at this time of year - anybody got any update on the snow conditions - got excited looking at some webcams but then saw that some of them had dates in January! Seems like potentially the largest area with N. facing slopes, but how convenient is it likely to be with some areas scheduled to have closed already? Is there enough on Parsenn to make it more worthwhile than Engelberg?
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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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Sharkymark, thanks for feedback re Davos - you haven't mentioned Andermatt? Andermatt and Disentis look really good - but maybe for a more 'snowsure' time of year?
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We did have Andermatt on the list but it was removed. My mate based his latest list on the snow conditions at the beginning of this week. He managed to gouge his skis in Andermatt in deep snow in February so it maybe a bit dubious now...
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snowHeads are a friendly bunch.
snowHeads are a friendly bunch.
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| agavin wrote: |
| DBWhat is the orientation of the upper slopes at St. Anton? I may be wrong, but it appears that St Anton only goes up to around 2600? How much vertical are you talking about still being skiable in St Anton assuming 'not too hot' spring weather? |
The Valluga is 2800 but much of the skiing starts from 2600-2700. It all depends on the weather but even if it's only 1000m there still looks to be more skiing that other summer ski resorts. How much higher is Engelberg 200m? It tends to be a bit cooler in the east and the temps at St Anton @ 2800m are very similar to Engelberg at 3000m. Where ever you end up the pistes are probably going to suffer a bit late afternoon, although yes St Anton is mainly south facing so it will suffer. I doubt anywhere else on your list comes close to the afternoon entertainment offered at St Anton.
http://intermaps.feratel.com/skimaps/arlberg_ost/
http://www.breakthroughonskis.com/Pages/_ski_instruction/instruction04.html
PS If the sun is strong but the temps remain low then Lech and Zurs (just up the road) have north facing slopes although a lower altitude.
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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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The Titlis mountain is pretty much north facing and the Glacier is great fun. Engelberg keeps its snow very well and if the temperatures drop then you will have more than enough. People don't go to Engelberg for the piste skiing and I couldn't tell you anything about them. They go for the Laub and the Glacier and all the other drop-offs in between. So much so that Shane McConkey, Seth Morrison and JP Auclair were all in town last week. Big Warren Miller film crews and everything. Apparently I shouted at JP Auclair not to jump off a 90 ft cliff but he did it anyway so I filmed it, albeit from a few hundred mtrs away.
The only queue I saw was about 0930 at the weekend otherwise didn't hit a queue all week...
Oh well, thats the cat out of the bag...!!
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DB, Thanks DB - I'll keep an open mind on St. Anton then and monitor the snow conditions between now and then.
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You know it makes sense.
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Excellent...less than 24 hours to go now
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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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agavin, Andermatt has skiing at 3000m on the Gemstock.
Don't panic we are starting the spring with lots of snow and the weather looks to be cooling off a little.
Engelberg is always good in the spring and at the moment, the run back to the village at 1000m is still open. I have been there on May 10th before now with 1200m skiable vertical.
Disentis sometimes reopens for the Ascension and Pentecost public holidays in mid May!
Generally speaking Central Switzerland (Andermatt, Engelberg) has more snow at the moment than Graubuenden (Davos, Laax)
Have a look at http://wispo.stnet.ch/requests/MySwitzerlandSearchRequest.jsp to get an overview of conditions.
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Poster: A snowHead
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It's raining in Baden, near Zürich, at the moment. We're off to Wengen tomorrow as there appears to be a break in the weather...I'll post what the conditions are like...
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Obviously A snowHead isn't a real person
Obviously A snowHead isn't a real person
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Sharkymark, thanks for the update - please also post about Engelberg if possible and once you have had your day or 2 there? Thanks and enjoy.
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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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We went to Wengen today: the wearther was fantastic but the pistes were soft at 9:30 am when we turned up. There were plenty of bare patches but a surprising amount of snow remains, although it is very tough going with slush bumps in the afternoon. It appeared to be thawing at about 3000m up on the Jungfrau and it was very warm all day. The plan is for Andermatt tomorrow...
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