Winter has well and truly arrived! : 19th December 2011
And more snow predicted

After a long and sunny autumn that saw bare mountains and grassy hillsides, winter has well and truly arrived in Alpe d'Huez.  The trees are now loaded with a thick coating of snow and the car parks are filled with huge white lumps, only identifiable as cars by the odd visible wing mirror or windscreen wiper. 

In fact, hitting the mountain today, you'd never have guessed that pistes here opened five days later than expected due to a lack of snow.  Visitors who arrived on Saturday for the first 'real week' of the season were shocked to find themselves in the midst of an epic snowstorm that howled through the town dumping a metre of snow and causing havoc on the roads. 

And the question on every tourist's lips was, “how many runs are open?”  Expecting the 'lack of snow' to be the problem this week, most were surprised to learn it was the excess of wintry weather that was closing the pistes and the lifts.  But once the storm abated on Sunday morning, the area regained a semblance of order and skiers and snowboarders made their way happily up the mountain. 

Despite those high winds, snow has fallen heavily across the mountain and the pisteurs of Alpe d'Huez – whose prowess won them a national competition last year – have done us proud. The slopes that are open have been well-groomed to maintain and preserve the snow base.  Extreme temperatures as low as -19C mean the highest lifts (Pic Blanc to 3330m and Marmottes III to 3060m) remain closed for the time being, and a selection of other, lower runs are closed due to avalanche risk or snow creation.

That said, the majority of runs in the Alpe d'Huez Grande Domaine are now open, including the links between Auris, Villard Reculas, Oz en Oisans and Vaujany.  This gives skiers and snowboarders plenty to play with out of the wind, although it's still very cold at lower altitude with temperatures of -13C recorded today in resort. 

The winds and clouds hovered around 2000m for most of the day, just above resort. Riding up the Grand Sure chairlift to the Signal (2115m) we were whisked from the calm cold into a world of glacial winds and fine flakes.  Deciding to stay low, we took blue pistes Petit Prince and Chemin du Patre down into Villard Reculas.  The Petit Prince is in great condition; wide and grippy, it's a safe-bet no matter what the weather. 

As the clouds started to part we made our way down Hirondelles and up the Jeux draglift, which provides a quick and easy alternative to the first leg of the DMC.  From here we rode Poutran and Champclotury down into Oz en Oisans, passing the new blue piste – Chevreuils – which links Champclotury to the village below. 

On our way home we made the most of the safe and fresh powder on the Petite Sure, bouncing amongst the trees and putting our legs to the test.  Across the mountain there are acres of untouched snow to be had, but with the avalanche warning at 4/5 it's vital to know your limits and those of the area.

By the end of the day the sky had cleared completely to a clear blue, with dark clouds hanging ominously over the Col d'Ornon.  Forecasts show a return of high winds tomorrow, this time bringing warmer weather (-3C to -7C) with sunshine expected on Friday and Christmas Day.

For the moment, though, the pre-Christmas skiing in Alpe d'Huez is excellent, with a variety of pistes to suite all levels and more snow on the way. 

• Date of last snowfall
  15/12/2011
• Depth of snow on upper slopes
  200
• Number of pistes open
  94
• Depth of snow on lower slopes
  119
• Altitude of highest temperature
  -11

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