Christmas is approaching and the snow is falling, so much so that Tignes had to close the road into resort, from the damn until 2pm today for safety reasons, while they cleared the snow!
Following a week that has seen around a metre of snowfall falling from the Three Valleys, to the Portes du Soleil and back down to Alpe d'Huez, the snow storm is begging to slow. The majority of snow due to fall over the weekend is expected today, with a dusting on Saturday and Sunday, then beginning again on Christmas Eve — if the long term weather forecasts are to be believed.
France is still making the most of the weather on offer with Val d'Isere and Tignes are forecast 43cm (36cm today) and 47cm respectively (37cm today). Further along the Tarantaise Valley, Meribel is forecast 51cm (39cm today) and Courchevel should receive around 56cm — with a fantastic 41cm today alone. The aforementioned Alpe d'Huez is forecast 42cm today and over half a metre by the weekend. The biggest snowfall in France over the weekend seems to be reserved for the Portes du Soleil, with Avoriaz expecting 77cm and Morzine boasting 81cm in three days.
Switzerland is following the same pattern, with good snowfall across the weekend, most of which is falling today. Verbier is forecast 62cm, ideal for some early season powder, Zermatt should see around 41cm of fresh snow as will Saas Fee. St. Moritz is benefitting from 17cm today, with more over the weekend (21cm in total), and Klosters boasts 33cm, 20cm of which is forecast for today.
Austria is also getting in on the act over the weekend, adding that white Christmas feel to its resorts. St. Anton, Lech and Ischgl are all set for around 34cm of fresh snow, with today seeing the biggest dump. The charming resort of Kitzbuhel is forecast 29cm of fresh snow, adding to its already romantic feel at this time of year.
Italy is set for some cracking conditions early next week as a snow storm kicks fully into gear over the weekend. On the Italian side of Mt. Blanc, Courmayeur is boasting 73cm of fresh powder, while the Matterhorn's Cervinia should see around 52cm of fresh snow. The ever popular Milky Way will also get pre-Christmas covering, with around 20cm of snow expected in the region.
North America benefitted massively from some awesome early season snow, but while Europe is gaining most of Mother Nature's most important weather, there is also a little left for the other side of the Atlantic. Whistler tops-up a bumper start to the season with 14cm of snow over the weekend, while Banff and Lake Louise are forecast 8cm and 11cm, respectively. Heading south of the border and Jackson Hole should get a light dusting today, while heading north once again, and Alaska's resort of Alyeska boasts a huge 92cm of snow over the next 5 days.
For me, Christmas has come early.
The Snowman
_[_]_
( " )
'--( : )--'
( : )
""' - ... - '""