J2Ski Forum Posts and Replies by J2SkiNews

There has been some very heavy snowfall in the Austrian Alps overnight with ski areas reporting up to 80cm (nearly three feet) of snowfall in the past 24 hours.

The Stubai (pictured above this morning) has posted the biggest number so far but the Kitzsteinhorn has had 50cm, Kaunertal 45cm and Pitztal 40cm of fresh, on top of lots of snowfall over the past 12 days.

The Stubai has now had 135cm (4.5 feet) of snow in the past week, the most in the world.

Although Austria is reporting the biggest snowfalls, there have been heavy snowfalls across Europe with areas in the Dolomites and Pyrenees opening early and accumulations over the past week at some areas in France, Italy and Switzerland also at or near the metre mark.

The snow has caused logistical problems in places through some centres are operating today (nine areas are currently open for the 19-20 season in Austria). The Molltal glacier reported the road up to the slopes blocked by fallen trees and branches brought down by weight of snow this morning.

Our snow forecasts are currently predicting more heavy snow in some areas, with more than aa metre more possible by the end of the weekend at some areas in Salzburgerland and Tirol although lighter snow is likely across the majority of the country. Friday is forecast to see more very heavy snowstorms.

Obergurgl is due to open for the season tomorrow, Schladming on Friday.

The 2019-20 ski season is set to get started in the Pyrenees on Wednesday, 13 November after Spain's Alp 2500 ski area shared by Masella and La Molina announced its plan to open at short notice.

A second Spanish ski area, Formigal, say they'll be opening early for the season this Saturday too.

French resort Porte Puymorens (library picture above) has also announced it will be opening this week. It says it will open its Vignole sector on Saturday 16 November 2019 and that other sectors are likely to open as conditions allow.

There's been heavy snowfall in the Pyrenees on and off over the past few weeks and several resorts in now say they have at least 50cm of snow lying on their lower slopes and some have more than a metre at the top of their runs.

J2Ski is forecasting more heavy snow in the Pyrenees over the next week too, with intense snowfalls from Friday to Monday.

Last year there was very heavy snowfall in the final days of October in the Pyrenees and the Alps 2500 ski area opened on November 1st, again the earliest in the region to do so.

A number of the world's leading resorts are opening this weekend along with a dozen or so other ski areas to take the total number of centres already open for the 2019-20 ski season in Europe and North America past the 50 mark.

Italy's Cortina d'Amezzo is perhaps the biggest surprise, opening 20 days earlier than expected on Sunday 10th November.

There have been two snowfalls above Cortina in the last few days and on Friday it was snowing in town, depositing 20cm by yesterday afternoon with the snow still falling.

Due to the favourable conditions, the Col Gallina chairlift will open days in advance on the official opening of Cortina's ski season on 30th November.

Two Swiss resorts that had hoped to open in October will also now be opening after heavy snowfall there too.

Andermatt's ski season will start today, 9th November, as the "Sonnenpiste" on the Gemsstock opens to the public. Due to the recent cold weather and snowfall over the past few days, as well as the high altitude of the Gemsstock, (3,000m above sea level), the resort will be running two aerial cable cars up the mountain on the weekend of the 9th and 10th November.

Skiing will at first only be possible on the "Sonnenpiste" and further facilities and slopes, including the valley run, will gradually be put into operation as the season develops. The entire Gemsstock is due to open on weekends from the 1st December, and from the 7th December it will open daily.

In light of 50cm of fresh snow falling on Tuesday 5 November, Verbier will also open its ski area from today, Saturday 9 November. Initially this will only be on Saturdays and Sundays.

More ski areas will be opening in Austria, Italy, Norway and Sweden taking the total number of areas now open in Europe past the 30 mark.

Over in North America big name resort openings this weekend include Breckenridge, Copper and Mammoth in the USA and Marmot Basin near Jasper as well as sunshine near Banff in Canada. The first centre in Eastern Canada, Mont Ste Sauveur in Quebec, also opened for the season yesterday.

The infamous Hahnenkamm World Cup race, which many downhillers rate as more important than an Olympic win, will be staged for the 80th time in January.

Kitzbühel in the Austrian Tirol will host a series of races, including the downhill, from 20-26 January 2020.

The resort has also announced race winners in the downhill and slalom will receive record prize money of €100,000. That's more than double the World Cup race winning average. The Super-G race for which the winner will be awarded 68,500 Euros.

The events will take place on the renowned Streif run, which is filled with blind drops, daredevil jumps, and unforgiving twists and turns.

The slick, steep track propels the competitors up to speeds of 140 kph, and the legendary Mousetrap trap jump launches racers 80 metres through the air.

In this special anniversary year, there is expected to be an electric atmosphere throughout Kitzbühel, as athletes and spectators descend on the town for a week of adrenaline-filled excitement.

In these uncertain times we are apparently wanting to secure our futures as far ahead as possible, so it's probably good news that you can now book a ski holiday departing in a little over 18 months' time in April, 2021.

The UK's largest operator, Crystal Ski holidays, have put their ski holidays on sale for the winter after next (2020/21) today, more than a month before departures actually start on packages for the upcoming 2019/20 winter.

It's Crystal's earliest ever date for putting ski holidays on sale. In recent years the date had kept getting earlier and had made it to early December, just before the start of the 'current' season for package holiday departures.

Crystal's winter 2020/21 programme features a wide offering of accommodation, ranging from half-board hotels to self-catering apartments and chalets in over 120 resorts across 13 countries in Europe and North America. Season dates are 12 December 2020 until 17 April 2021.

Departures operate from more than 20 regional airports and two international train stations, so customers have flexibility when booking their ski holiday. All holidays include flights, transfers and accommodation, as well as the option to add lift passes, equipment and ski school, so everything is ready and customers can arrive and enjoy the slopes.

Very, very early booking offers include a low deposit of £100 per person, and families booking their ski holiday can also save £50 off childcare.

The amount of fresh snow on some already-open glacier ski areas has passed the 50cm (20 inches) mark at a number of ski areas.

The Stubai glacier has reported the most to date with 65cm (two feet, two inches) since Saturday. The Kaunertal (55cm) and Hintertux (45cm) are not far behind, with yet-to-open Alpe d'Huez reporting 40cm in 24 hours at the weekend. The Molltal glacier also reported 40cm in the last 24 hours.

So far some of the more 'excited' predictions for 50cm in 24 hours and 1 to 1.5 metre snowfalls at some areas by Thursday have not materialised but on a more realistic level, high slopes in the alps are definitely getting dumped on and the good news is that most are set to see the snowfall continue, on and off, for at least the coming week.

There are currently 16 ski areas already open for the 19-20 ski season in the Alps, more than half of them in Austria with most of the rest in Switzerland, along with two in Italy and one , Tignes, in France.

Many of the areas have had to close at times over the past few days due to the weather, or restricted traffic on access roads to those with snow chains (as is the case at Solden today), but there's reported to be great snow conditions once the slopes are accessible and base depths – which had been thin at many glacier areas – look set to double.

An Italian ski resort will open new terrain served by new lifts in order to expand its ski slope extent by 10% this winter.

The Paganella ski area in Trentino will unveil a new gondola lift, with cabins that can each carry up to 10 people, ferrying 2400 to 3000 people per hour in to the new terrain.

The lift ascends from Pian del Dosson (the midway station for the existing cable car that goes from the centre of Andalo to Doss Pelà), and will reach at La Selletta at 2000m.

At the same time, a new piste is being created from the top of the lift - the 2 km red Selletta-Dosson piste - which will run alongside the system's route and, as with all the other pistes in this ski area, will be equipped with a modern programmed snow-making system.

To link the new piste to the existing network, a further 400 m long connecting piste is being created, connecting Rifugio Malga Zambana to the new run.

As a result of the works in the Paganella ski area, the available ski area will increase by 10%.

Killington in Vermont looks to have won the race to be "first in the East" to open for North America for the 2019-20 season.

It has been an unseasonably warm autumn on the Eastern side of North America (Whilst resorts including Breckenridge and Steamboat in Colorado posted record October snowfall) and whilst there have been periods cold enough for snowmaking in the East, and even a little natural snowfall, over the past month, it hasn't lasted long enough to build a skiable base. Until now.

Killington began snowmaking on November 1st as temperatures dropped and has now opened for a season that normally lasts to the end of May, or early June.

As yet there are no opening day pictures, the image top was taken a fortnight ago during the last period of 'wintry' weather there.

Other resorts that aim to open early in the East, often in October, including Sunday river in Maine, Wildcat Mountain New Hampshire and Mont St Sauveur up in Quebec all report snowmaking underway, but have not named opening days yet.

The forecast is for conditions to remain fairly marginal for snow for the next few days with the freezing point moving up and down the mountain, but for it to get colder from Wednesday/Thursday with the chance of a little natural snowfall.

More than a dozen ski areas are now open in the US, seven in Colorado, three in the Midwest and one each in Nevada and New Mexico. Two thirds of these have opened in the past few days.