J2Ski Forum Posts and Replies by J2SkiNews

Although most northern hemisphere ski areas have now closed for the season and much of the snowfall focus has switched to the southern hemisphere (resorts in New Zealand have reported up to an estimated 1.32m/4 feet over the past few days) around 100 areas, the majority in Japan and the USA, kept operating into May. Of these about a quarter, in 10 countries, are due to close at the end of Sunday.

They include several areas believed to be the last open in their respective countries including Germany's Zugspitze glacier and Spain and Europe's most southerly ski area, Sierra Nevada.

Those closing Sunday also include Austria's Ischgl, Pitztal, Solden – which have been open for up to 8 months; Canada's Lake Louise and Marmot Basin; Pyha, Ruka, Saariselkä and Yllas in Finland; Tignes, Val d'Isere and Val Thorens in France.

Austria will still have five glacier areas open next week but for Finland it'll just bed Levi and for France it's just Les 2 Alpes.

Switzerland's Adelboden, Diavolezza Glacier (near St Mortitz), Engelberg, Glacier 3000 (near Gstaad and Samnaun are closing, in Italy Cortina d'Ampezzo's Col Gallina and the Val Senales glacier which will just leave the Cervinia-Zermatt cross-border ski area open in the two countries. With Hemsedal and Narvik closing all of Norway's resorts are believed to be closed from Monday but it's three glacier ski areas are expected to start opening from next weekend.

Elsewhere, in Japan, dozens of ski areas will close at the end of Tuesday, 6th May, the end of the annual Golden Week celebrations in the country. A few centres there will stay open though including the Gassan Glacier summer ski area which opened for 2025 a few weeks ago and is currently posting the world deepest base at around 9 metres.

More than two dozen ski areas will remain open in the US after the weekend, the most of any country in the world, although many now only opening weekends. They include several that have kept extending their seasons including the Arizona Snowbowl which will now also open Saturday, May 10; Sunday, May 11; Saturday, May 17; and Sunday, May 18.

La Plagne's project to modernise and improve access to its high-altitude glacial terrain is due to be completed ahead of next winter with the opening of the new Roche de Mio gondola.

The first stage of this project was completed with the construction of the Glaciers gondola lift, connecting Roche de Mio to Live 3000 (the new name the resort has given its high altitude terrain) which went into service in December 2023).

Throughout summer 2025, La Plagne lift compoany's in-house team will work on the second phase of the project: the construction of the new Roche de Mio gondola lift, with a capacity of over 3,100 people per hour, which will connect Plagne Bellecôte to Roche de Mio, via the Col de Forcle.

"This new installation will enhance accessibility across the ski area and is scheduled to open in December 2025," a La Plagne spokesperson said.

The new gondola means that next winter access to Roche de Mio will be greatly improved with direct access to the summit directly from Plagne Bellecôte via the new gondola lift and from Champagny via the Carella chairlift. The lift will also provide access to the summit of Grande Rochette, boarding at the mid-station at Col de Forcle.

To ensure a smooth transition, the old gondola connecting Plagne Bellecote to Belle Plagne will not be operational this 2025 summer with a replacement bus service for summer guests available between Plagne Bellecote and Belle Plagne, allowing Bellcote guests to take the gondola from Belle Plagne to the Roche de Mio.

Very sad news, I think I was the only attendee of their first press trip in 2006 :( ...Skiing (aka utterly failing to keep up with) the stunt woman double from a Bond film. I see Balkan holidays and Ski Olympic also shut up shop in the past week.

Austrian ski resort Ischgl has posted 2 million skier visits for the first time since pre pandemic.

To celebrate, board members of the resort's Silvrettaseilbahn lift company Markus Walser and Günther Zangerl, jointly welcomed Mrs Annemarie Dohr and her husband Harald from Lower Austria, to the couple's great surprise, providing the two millionth winter guests with gifts as they boarded a gondola.

Ischgl was identified as a major hotspot of the COVID-19 pandemic in Europe. Six hundred infections in Austria and up to 1,200 infections in Germany and the Nordic countries were traced back to the ski resort, starting from Iceland on 1 March 2020. The whole town was eventually quarantined from 13 March until 22 April 2020 and various mass legal actions were brought against it and the wider region as a result of the infections.

"Even though the prestigious 2 million mark has already been reached for the ninth time in the history of Silvrettaseilbahn AG, the joy this year is particularly great. This is the first time since 29 April 2019 that this impressive threshold has been exceeded again within a single winter season. For those responsible, this is a clear sign that the sustained investment in quality, comfort and the range of experiences on offer in the Silvretta Arena continues to pay off," a company press statement reads, adding, "By reaching the two millionth guest mark, the company is seamlessly building on its best results of recent years and is optimistic about the coming summer season and winter 2025/26."

Marathon-running fundraiser Mike Humphreys of Hedon in Yorkshire has completed the Paris Marathon running in a pair of ski boots.

Mike, who is a personal trainer, took only six hours and 50 minutes to complete the race in what he described as "probably the toughest thing I've ever done".

It's just the latest in a long list of fundraising challenges including cycling from Hull to Val Thorens on a Raleigh Chopper bike.

Mike is raising funds and awareness for the fight against motor neurone disease, which he lost one good friend to in 2013 and now has a second friend diagnosed with the condition.

Mike's GoFundMe has raised more than £33,000, surpassing his £30,000 goal.

https://www.gofundme.com/f/raising-money-for-mnd-and-craig-eskrett?utm_campaign=p_lico+share-sheet&utm_medium=copy_link&utm_source=customer

Wednesday-Thursday snowfall totals of up to 3 metres were initially being reported in the Alps from the massive storm of the last few days. However the high stat for Les Arcs, which has also returned to the top of Europe's snow-depth table reporting 3.2m lying up top, was later cut down to 155cm - or around five feet, after what appeared to be an over enthusiastic keying in error.

Elsewhere Tignes also reported 155cm accumulated in the same period, Val d'Isere 150cm, La Plagne 121cm, Courchevel 120cm, Chamonix 110cm, Zermatt 105cm and Val Thorens 103cm. Many other resorts have posted 50-100cm falls.

Skies have cleared and ski slopes are gradually reopening but the authorities are warning of continuing extremely high avalanche danger, exacerbated by rising temperatures, which are also leading to potential flooding fears in some areas. Authorities and ski resort managers are advising extreme vigilance and strict adherence to rules and advice on what's open and what's not.

noon update...

Thanks for the update. Seeing there's now a mandatory 'stay indoors' order for Tignes for much of today too.