News from Chatel and the Valley d'Abondance
Local snow conditions for the Portes du Soleil area
As we enter the busy school holiday period, conditions in the Portes du Soleil are excellent. Chatel has 125 cm of snow at the base, and Avoriaz has 240 cm at the top!
Great piste & off piste skiing conditions to be found everywhere.
We still have a bit of availability for March so contact us if you are interested in a last minute ski holiday to Chatel.
We woke to snow falling today which is always nice. Yesterday I took a spin around Pre La Joux, Linderets and Avoriaz, and pistes conditions were pretty good for the time of year. The off pistes is a bit barren in places, so don’t venture into it on your new planks! However, the piste skiing is great and a lot of the domain is open.
Things start to get busy at the weekend for the festive period, and the good news is that significant snow should be falling early next week!
Enjoy…
A week later than originally scheduled, but the recent snowfall meant that the lifts at Pre La Joux opened for business today.
No crowds, and lovely snow conditions….who can ask for more?
The lifts have shut, and the snow has returned! I might have to dust off my touring skis if it carries on…
It was just starting to feel as though spring and really got one over on winter, but winter is fighting back! Temperatures are dropping this evening, and there is 60 cm of snow forecast over the next two days, with more falling towards the end of the week.
We already have plenty of snow to last until the end of April, but of course we never say no to more powder!!!
We have just had a week of snow, and conditions are still splendid across the whole of the Portes du Soleil.
The Portes du Soleil has up to 270 cm at the top of the slopes and 150 cm at the bottom.
It looks like once again the Portes du Soleil will be finishing the season with significantly more snow than some of the higher/glacier resorts.
Chatel itself is now gearing up for some excellent events over the next few weeks. This Saturday, we have the Chatel Crew Contest, a Freestyle contest taking place at the Chatel Smoothpark.
Also, from the 21-25 March, look out for the Châtel 3Style Days. This event comprises of three big events:
The Razorsnowbike
Saturday 21 March 2009
From 9am to 3pm, meeting point at Linga
Amateurs riders in competition for one day of mountain bike on snow. The contest will be in two parts : in the morning, start in line and in the afternoon, four-cross. The Razorsnowbike was a very good success. 40 amateurs riders were present in a reaxed atmosphere. A play trail, with slope’s breaks, banking-bends and a good table at the end of the run. So a classical boardercross but on snow and with big bikes.
The Festyslide
Sunday 22 March 2009
The meeting between slide and music on Plaine-Dranse slopes.
Freestyle’s amateurs will be there to use Big air and Waterslide.
The day will be punctuated by concerts and DJ’s. At last freestyle demos and pyrotechnic animations will give rhythm to this event, really spectacular.
Superpark Event
Monday 23 and Tuesdat 24 March 2009
Ski & snowboard freestyle competition (pro)– Photo Shoot
Photo Shoot (Snowpark, freeride and life-style picture) on 2 days
Wow, what a day! We woke to one of the largest (if not THE largest) overnight dumps of snow I have ever seen. I shovelled a bit of snow, and then off to the slopes.
Once the slopes were finally open, the powder was just amazing. Unbelievably deep. It felt like we were up to our chins in it.
The sun is coming out tomorrow and it is still snowing as I type this, so the skiing should be amazing.
In the meantime, here are some shots of our garden. Not bad for the 6th December!
It looks like this week and next week (17th November onwards) could herald the first big snowfalls of the season. There is a lot of unsettled weather forecast coupled with very cold temperatures. A perfect way to start the season.
I will report back when the snow starts falling heavily!
Sunshine, powder, empty slopes…this is what skiing is all about. The conditions are excellent and the village is empty!
Whoops – I just realised it is nearly 2 months since I updated the blog. Since my last post, basically it has snowed, and snowed, and snowed, and snowed!
The end of Feb was sunny and springlike. In contrast, March & April (to date) have been cold and snowy. We have had so many excellent powder days that I have lost count. At the moment, we still have over 250 cm at the top of the mountain and although it is mild at the moment, more snow is forecast for the weekend.
All in all, we have had an excellent end of season, and it shows no signs of ending!