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In Alpe d'Huez temperatures are set to tumble

Snow in great conditions and chilly temperatures

featured in Snow report Author Rob Wood, Alpe d'Huez Reporter Updated

We have to start this report by sending our condolences to the family and friends of the young British skier who sadly lost his life following a fall after apparently becoming lost whilst skiing off-piste on Saturday morning. The 3 skiers involved in the tragic accident seem to have got lost off-piste up on the higher slopes of the Pic Blanc and took their skis off and tried to climb upwards to safety. Unfortunately, 2 of the group fell from a very steep, near vertical, cliff. A British national was confirmed dead at the scene and the second man who fell was treated by local mountain rescue team members on the mountain. The 2 surviving members of the group were helicoptered to safety. Our thoughts are with his family at this terrible time.

Meanwhile, the weather has been fairly settled here for the past week or so but, unfortunately, we haven’t had much snow to report. However, conditions remain, on the whole, very good. Today a large blanket of snow sat in the valley around Bourg d’Oisans and extended up to around 1900 metres above while the resort was shrouded in cloud for the most of the day. Temperatures in the main have remained at around 0ºC in resort in the afternoons of late, but that is all set to change on Monday!

In Alpe d'Huez temperatures are set to tumble

As has been the case over the past fortnight or so, we have had a couple of little top-ups of snow. Around 2 to 3cm fell on Sunday, Monday and Wednesday and these have helped to keep the surface fairly soft. There is some snow in the forecast for Wednesday and Thursday when around 35cm is likely to fall. As you would expect, the best of conditions are on the slopes above 2500 metres where it remains nice and soft, and it does tend to get a bit harder and packed on the lower slopes down to resort at 1850 metres. Avalanche risk in the main area is currently at 2 out of 5 but it does rise to 3 out of 5 on the slopes between 2800 and 3300 metres in the area of the Dome des Rousses and Pic Blanc.

The freeze height has been hovering at around 1200 metres for the past few days but, with imminent arrival of the “Beast from the East”, a huge area of freezing Siberian weather, it will plunge down to around sea level on Monday as the temperatures are set to plummet to around -15ºC in resort between Monday and Thursday while at higher elevations on Tuesday it will feel something like -22ºC.

In Alpe d'Huez temperatures are set to tumble

After the recent little top-ups, on-piste snow cover currently stands at:

  • Alpe d’Huez resort (1850m) - 196cm
  • Pic Blanc (3300m) - 320cm
  • Auris village (1650m) - 85cm
  • Auris Signal (2176m) - 110cm
  • Villard Reculas (1500m) - 90cm
  • Vaujany (1250m) - 100cm
  • Oz-en Oisans (1350m) - 110cm
  • Montfrais (1650m) - 150cm
  • Dome des Rousses (2800m) - 250cm

Off piste snow cover still stands at:

  • 2500m: north - 310cm, south - 280cm
  • 2000m: north - 205cm, south - 150cm
  • 1500m: north - 100cm, south - 60cm
  • 1000m: north - 10cm, south - 5cm

Despite good depths, off-piste conditions aren’t great due in the main to the strong winds earlier in the week which have caused it to be a somewhat wind-blown and hard packed now. W could do with some fresh snow to improve the off-piste conditions! Please be careful if you are heading off-piste, always respect the mountain.

Snow cover still extends all the way down to around 1000 metres, so every slope within the Grande Domaine ski area has plenty of snow cover. Thanks to continuing cold temperatures, it remains nice, light and powdery at higher elevations.

In Alpe d'Huez temperatures are set to tumble

The French school holidays are still ongoing, although the peak has now passed. The French schools “winter holiday” lasts until Saturday 10th March, and this week is the second (and final) week of the Parisian area. The week of 3rd March to 10th March only sees one zone on holiday, so it will be much quieter in resort next week.

Today we had 68 lifts open (out of 69), 30 of these are in Alpe d’Huez itself. The only lift in the Grande Domaine out of action was a short drag lift over in Vaujany. These 68 lifts are serving 102 pistes across the Grande Domaine ski area out of 103. The only exception was the black piste Roche Noir in Oz (a short steep piste as you approach Oz-en-Oisans from the mid-station of the DMC ). Of these 102 pistes, 27 are green, 31 are blue, 28 are red and 16 are black. So there continues to be something for everybody with plenty of choice at all elevations, as has been the case all season.

Three of the black runs here in Alpe d’Huez continue to be recommended for “bon skieurs uniquement” – good skiers only, in the main because of their mogully terrain. These are Balcons, Tunnel and Chateau Noir up at 3300 metres. These warnings are in place for a reason, so please bear them in mind, know your limits and don’t be a hero!

Both snowparks are open and continue to be in great condition. The one over in Vaujany is always much quieter than the one here in Alpe d’Huez, although it is quite a bit smaller than the one at the DMC. Both have good kickers, perfect if you fancy giving it some big air like Olympic hero Billy Morgan. We continue to have 100% of the cross-country ski trails open, with 39km of lovely groomed trails available and in great condition. In addition to these XC trails, there are 36km of walking trails open (out of 37km = 97%).

In Alpe d'Huez temperatures are set to tumble

As spring continues to approach, although it may not feel much like it this week, the days are really starting to stretch. With sunrise this morning at 07:24 and sunset at 18:13, we get 10 hours and 49 minutes of daylight today.

In Alpe d'Huez temperatures are set to tumble

This Wednesday sees the third of four fabulous ESF ski shows up at the Signal slope at the top end of town, getting underway this week at 18:45. This ski show/freestyle demonstration is followed by a torchlight descent and a great firework display.

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Map of the surrounding area