Messages posted by : admin
Did "hydrospeed" somewhere near Bourg St Maurice a couple of times way back when. A little tamer than canyoning, usually with a bit more water and small floats/boards. Great fun; but helmets very much required... apres activities consist mainly of comparing bruises! :lol:
I would think if she's a sensible, relatively cool-headed 13 then she'll be absolutely fine. The French allow surprisingly (to us over-cautious Brits) young children into those "go ape" type parks, but see what the local rules / advice say. |
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We got the following query by email this morning...
Here you go - Zermatt Ski Hire 8)
No, but there may be somewhere in Zermatt that does this... Anyone know anywhere that will hire ski clothing? |
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Austrian fly from Heathrow if that's any use.
Do you have an aversion to BA/easyJet or is it just their flight timings... :lol: |
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Well who doesn't like jumping into pools of water in the summer? Just add cliffs and you have canyoning. Top silliness! :D
This vid gives a taste of canyoning / canyoneering in the Gorges du Verdon... |
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Where to Ski in May - 2013
* Free to re-publish in whole or part so long as clearly credited to www.J2ski.com with the words "J2Ski Snow Report - May 2013" linked to http://www.j2ski.com/snow_forecast/ Hello, and welcome to the first of our monthly updates! Although we were planning an immediate rest, a few requests and the obsessive dedication of our news editor means we're relenting and putting out this guide to Where to Ski in May? Introduction Although there are still over 100 ski areas open in the northern hemisphere at the start of May, that number will diminish to perhaps less than 20 by the end of the month – one of the quietest few weeks in the ski year. That's because even the late-opening ski resorts continuing the 2012-13 ski seasons as long as possible tend to give-up the ghost by mid-May , whereas most summer ski glacier areas won't open until June or July and nor will southern hemisphere ski areas. By the end of May there will be more indoor 'snowdome' snow centres operating around the world than outdoor ski areas. This report details ski areas open for at least half the month. The Alps Austria It's glacier ski time in Austria, which has more glacier ski centres open at some point or another through spring to autumn than any other country. Hintertux, which had a 3m base at the start of the month, is one of two resorts worldwide open year round but you can also opt for The Pitztal glacier which still had the deepest snow in Austria (as well as the country's highest lifts) on May 1st at 4.2m or the Molltal glacier with as slightly more modest 4.1m, both open to May 12th. For later in the month Stubai (2.6m base) is open until at least May 20th and the Kitzsteinhorn glacier (250cm base); and Kaunertal glacier (210cm base) are both open to June (closing on 2nd and 9th respectively), as should be the Dachstein Glacier. France France is unusual in having no ski resorts open at all from mid-May to mid-June but you can ski at Tignes (3.3m at start of month) and Val Thorens (2.5m at start of month) until May 12th. There is usually no skiing in the Pyrenees after April but the cult freeride centre at Pic du Midi has announced its re-opening for freeride skiing from 6th to 12th May for those suitably experienced and equipped having received more than 15m of snow this winter. Italy May skiing options in Italy appear to be limited, after the first weekend, to a couple of red runs on the Presena Glacier above Passo Tonale, which had a 4m snow base at the start of May. Val Senales won't be opening for summer skiing this year and Cervinia is closed until the summer. Passo Stelvio expects to open on June 1st. Switzerland In Switzerland there's year round skiing at Zermatt, which had more than 2m of snow lying on its glacier slopes, which normally maintain at least an 800m vertical, at the start of May. Europe's highest lifts, a couple of T Bars reaching 3899m, operate there in summer only. Other choices include the Diavolezza Glacier near St Moritz (1.5m base) open to 20th May; Engelberg (over 4.5m base) and Gstaad's Glacier 3000 (over 5m upper slope base) which is open weekends to 26th May. Scandinavia (and Scotland!) Scotland's excellent 2012-13 season, with snow still falling at the start of May, has left Cairngorm operational and looking good to stay open so long as demand continues. Glencoe and to a less extent Nevis range are also opening, although only at weekends. Norway's three glacier ski areas are opening beginning with Folgefonn on May 1st, Galdhøpiggen on 18th May and Stryn on a yet to be determined date in late May while in the Swedish Arctic Circle Riksgransen is open until May 26th with skiing under the midnight sun in the latter half of the month. Over in Lapland, Ruka heroically maintains the longest ski season of the world for a non-glacier resort. It should be open until mid-June, thanks in part to a pile of machine made snow through the winter enabling it to keep its main slope open as 24 hour daylight approaches here too. North America Canada Sunshine at Banff (2m base, 4cm fresh snow on April 30th, open to May 20th) and the Blackcomb Glacier at Whistler, open daily from 10am to 4pm until May 27th, are the two Canadian ski options in May. USA Six US resorts look set to stay open throughout May, although some only at weekends. With more than a metre of snow falling in the last few weeks of April (after 95% of the states ski areas had closed), Arapahoe Basin in Colorado is one of the best bets, starting May 100% open with a 1.4m base and plans to be open to June. In California Mammoth, which is often open to July 4th, is the sole survivor and has so far announced it plans to stay open at least to the US Memorial Day holiday weekend, May 27th. It starts May with more than a 4m base having had the deepest snow in the country for much of the 12-13 ski season. In Utah Snowbird, which starts May with a 2.5m base, is open daily until May 13th, after which it's weekends. No closing date has been set but the events calendar has après ski parties planned to May 31st so far. In Oregon Mount Bachelor will be open to May 26th and Timberline right through to early September (when it closes for a few weeks of maintenance). The sixth option is Crystal Mountain In Washington State which is open weekends from now to June 16th. Southern Hemisphere It's not inconceivable that the ski season will kick off south of the equator before the end of May, although in most cases resorts do not plan to open until June. In the past it is often the small ski areas of southern Africa that have opened first, during May, but currently Afriski in Lesotho is projecting a June 7th opening date. Tiffindell in South Africa re-opens this winter after several seasons closed and has also opened in May in previous years. Elsewhere first snow has already been reported in Australia and New Zealand. Rest Of The World It's difficult to get accurate information on snow conditions, but it was reported to be snowing this week at Gassan in Japan and likely to continue snowing through the early days of May. Gassan is Japan's main spring/summer ski destination and does not begin its annual season until mid-April each year, leaving accumulated snow in pristine condition. It then normally remains open daily to July. If you need a snow fix remember there are more than 50 indoor snow centres operating year round around the world, six of them here in the UK, so fresh snow in one form or another is never far away. |
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Week Ending April 27th, 2013
* Free to re-publish in whole or part so long as clearly credited to www.J2ski.com with the words "J2Ski Snow Report" linked to http://www.j2ski.com/snow_forecast/ As temperatures rise in The Alps (after yet more snow!), it's time for us to take our end-of-season rest... this will be the last of our weekly updates for the 2012/2013 season. We will be sending out monthly updates, telling you where in the world it's snowing, until late September and our snow reports for the Southern Hemisphere will be kicking off as ski areas on the other side of the world take their turn. This Week's Headlines - Up to 40cm of fresh snow in the Alps. - First snow in Australia for 2013, Mt Buller and Perisher both announce 5cm falls. - Up to 55cm More snow in Colorado and Utah. - First turns on fresh snow in New Zealand. Overview The start of May is a major event for those resorts that make a feature of staying open to at least the middle-of-Spring and fresh snow in the Alps, the Rockies and even the Scottish Highlands in recent days means that the end of April is looking remarkable still mid-winter-like at key resorts in Europe and North America. At the same time excitement is building on the other side of the world as the southern hemisphere's 2013 ski season nears, helped by the first big pre-season snowfalls of the 'winter' in New Zealand, where skiers were able to make first turns at Mt Hutt at the weekend some 8 weeks before the official start of the season there. Snow was also reported at most Australian ski areas towards the end of last week. Europe Austria Big things are afoot in the Austrian Alps this weekend and early next week with shows and events at the resorts that are still open. Ischgl (110cm base, no fresh snow) has the biggest party in the Alps with 20,000 expected to see Deep Purple play on the top of the mountain next Tuesday April 30. The Pitztal glacier (open to May 12th) still has the deepest snow in Austria (as well as the country's highest lifts) and got 5cm to freshen up its 4.3m base. The Molltal glacier has a 4.1m base and is also open to May 12th. Strubai (2.6m base) is open a further week until at least May 20th. Solden reported an 18cm fall on Monday and has 2.7m (9 feet) lying on the glacier. It's open until May 5th. You can still ski in Austria after May though – the Kitzsteinhorn glacier to June 2nd (250cm base); the Kaunertal glacier (210cm base) is open to June 9th and Hintertux (305cm base, 10cm fresh) year round. France As we approach May around 30 ski areas are open in France at present, although for many, this weekend is the last weekend of 12-13. That's not the case for Tignes (380cm base, closing 12th May) or Val d'Isere (370cm base; closing 5th May) which reported 40cm of fresh snow at the weekend, while France's highest resort, Val Thorens (370cm base, 20cm fresh), will be the last to close in more than three weeks' time on May 19th. Many other resorts also reported 5-10cm of fresh snow at the weekend including Les 2 Alpes, Flaine, Courchevel and Les Arcs. Italy Although only a handful of resorts remain open in Italy, conditions are generally good where you can still ski and up to 30cm (a foot) of fresh snow was reported at the weekend, the biggest accumulation at Val Senales (3.5m base) which is open to May 5th. Val Senales formerly opened for summer skiing but seems to be saying it won't re-open until next October now leaving Passo Stelvio at the third option along with Passo Tonale (4m base – deepest in Italy – 20cm fresh) and summer skiing at Cervinia (350cm base, 10cm fresh, closes May 5th, re-open 29th June to 8th September) as Italy's remaining summer ski possibilities. Switzerland There was heavy snow at the end of last week (Thursday to Saturday) bringing up to 40cm of fresh snow on the remaining Swiss areas which are still open. At Verbier the last weekend of a great ski season is upon us and the remaining runs will close at the end of the day on 28th April 2013. "It's still great skiing from the top of Mont Fort to the resort," said a Verbier statement on Tuesday, "With spring skiing it is a pure pleasure then enjoy sitting on the terraces of mountain restaurants still open at the Gentian, Chalet Carlsberg as well at Attelas in La Chaux or to Ruinettes." The season continues in to May at Engelberg (477cm upper slope base, 35cm fresh last Friday), Gstaad's Glacier 3000 (510cm upper slope base, 40cm fresh last Friday, open to May 5th then weekends to 26th) and year round Zermatt (230cm upper slope base, 40cm fresh last Friday). The Pyrenees The snow is thawing fast in the Pyrenees now with temps near double figures but there's so mnuc h of it lying that Baqueira Beret, which extended its season to May 5th, still has 10 feet (3m) on uppere slopes and Grandvalira in Andorra, which reports 1.8m still there and actually 12cm of fresh last Saturday, will celebrate its final few days of the season this weekend. Most other areas are closed but Sierra Nevada in the south of the country is still claiming a 5m base, the world's deepest this week if correct. Scandinavia Most of Norway's ski areas are now closed but Hemsedal, with a metre of snow lying but nothing fresh, has its final weekend this weekend. However the country's three small glacier areas are opening soon, Folgefonn on May 1st, Galdhøpiggen on 18th May and Stryn on a yet to be determined date ion late May (they report it's -6 and snowing as we type) – after which all will be open daily to August, and reports good snow conditions with fresh cover at present. In Sweden it's the big end-of-season party weekend at Are, Scandinavia's biggest resort but up north in Riksgransen things are just getting going and the centre is reported to be largely fully booked through May as its famed 'skiing under the midnight sun' period nears. It's open until May 26th, but then re-opens June 20th-23rd for one weekend only. Across in Finnish Lapland there were a few centimetres of fresh snow towards the end of last week but bases are dropping towards 50-70cm. Most areas close this weekend but Ruka will aim to keep its main slope open to mid-June. Scotland There's been a thaw across the Highlands for most of the past week, but at altitude it still dips below freezing at night and Cairngorm managed to score a few more inches of fresh snow in recent days and remarkable can still offer top-to-bottom skiing. The main issue in the region however has been gale force winds again causing operational difficulties. Two of the five areas have closed for the season – The Lecht due to the thaw and Nevis Range perhaps more down to a lack of skiers and boarders to make operations viable. Both Glencoe and Glenshee are now closed mid-week but do have enough snow to operate and say they'll review the weather on Friday and decide whether to re-open at the weekend. North America Canada There are now four ski areas left open in Western Canada – Whistler in British Columbia (192cm/6.5 feet base, 6cm fresh) and Lake Louise (2.1m/7 feet base, 7cm fresh at weekend), Marmot Basin (1.2m/4 feet base, no fresh snow) and Sunshine Near Banff (2.1m/7 feet base, 7cm fresh at weekend), in Alberta. In fact as of last weekend Whistler Mountain is closed and Blackcomb is now open daily from 10am to 4pm until May 27th. The Blackcomb Resort Glacier will re-open daily noon to 3pm from June 22nd to July 28th. In the east its final weekend opening with Mont Ste Anne reporting 3cm of fresh on their 1.5m base and Mont Sutton considering an unscheduled reopening for die hards subject to demand (which they'd like to be shown on their Facebook page before deciding). USA The snow has continued to fall in Colorado, in fact more than anywhere else on the planet, this past week with A Basin, which plans to stay open to early June, reporting 55cm of fresh snow. Loveland, open another week or so, has had 20cm, and Aspen Highlands plans to reopen this weekend. All the snow has blocked some passes up to the ski slopes. The good snow news has been over shadowed by the very sad news of the worst avalanche fatalities in over 50 years in the state last weekend however. Elsewhere in the US, Alta and snowbird, both with around 2.7m (9 feet) bases remain open as do Crystal Mountain In Washington State (weekends from now to June 16th); and Mount Bachelor to May 26th) and Timberline (right through to early September) in Oregon. |
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Week Ending April 20th, 2013
* Free to re-publish in whole or part so long as clearly credited to www.J2ski.com with the words "J2Ski Snow Report" linked to http://www.j2ski.com/snow_forecast/ After a week of warmth in The Alps, temperatures are set to fall significantly over the next few days - with the likelihood of fresh snow above 2,000 metres... We had planned for this to be the last weekly round-up for the 2012/13 season but it seems we can't pack up our keyboards for the summer just yet! This Week's Headlines - Heavy snow continues to fall in Western North America, but most resorts there are now closed. - Up to 45cm of fresh snow in the French Alps, with some resorts extending the season to late-May. - Very warm in the Alps this past week, but getting colder this weekend. - All five Scottish areas open, still, subject to demand, and winds dropping, except Nevis Range which is now weekends only. - Breckenridge, Copper, Vail to re-open this weekend, joining still open Aspen and Winter Park. - 4m+ upper slope base depths still reported at Alpe d'Huez, Engelberg, Gstaad, Passo Tonale, Mammoth, Niseko and others. Europe Austria Around three-quarters of Austrian ski areas have now closed for the season, perhaps marginally the highest proportion in the Alps. But for those that are still open there's a battle for market share with big name stars at festivals (Deep Purple heading to Ischgl for the last weekend of the month) and events like ' win a luxury car' in an on piste treasure hunt for the keys at Obertauern). Solden has piste bashers pretending to be elephants in a glacier wide recreation of the story of Hannibal. As to snow, not much, although Ischgl, Kitzbuhel, Obergurgl and Obertauern each reported 5-10cm falling at the end of last week. Piste depths at the open resorts still look very healthy though, topped by Pitztal with 3.8m (nearly 13 feet), but with 2.5m (over 8 feet) lying at Solden and Obertauern and 2.2m (over 7 feet) at St Anton. France Most French ski areas remain open at least until this weekend, and a good number including Tignes, Val d'Isere and Val Thorens open in to May. Val Thorens, which still has a month of the season to run, is looking good with another 40cm of fresh snow this week, including a foot (30cm) on Sunday and has a base just below 4m – so some snow will probably last now to winter 2013-14 there. It's not the deepest in the country though, Alpe d'Huez still has a 4.1m base. Tignes, open to 12th May, posted the biggest snowfall this week though with another 45cm (18 inches). Its 3m (10 foot) base on the Grand Motte glacier sets it in good stead for summer skiing from June to August. Elsewhere across the French Alps snowfalls typically in the range of 5-20cm (2-8 inches) have been recorded, including 10cm at la Plagne, 15cm at La Rosiere and Meribel, and 20cm at Les Arcs. Italy Unlike France, but rather like Austria, most Italian ski areas have now closed for the season. But many of the few dozen that are still open, will be staying open a week or two more in to May, and in some cases in to June. Passo Tonale, with a 4m (13.3 feet) base still, is in that latter category. Ion the former, Cervinia with a 3m (10 foot) base, is the only resort in the country to report fresh snow 20cm (eight inches) in fact. Also open in to May is Cortina with a 1.5m (five foot) base. Switzerland Around half of Swiss resorts are still open and with many of those offering skiing above 3000m, they've been perhaps the best placed to see minimal impact from the double digit temperatures in the Alps at times this week. The biggest snowfall, 20cm, was reported by Verbier which still has 3.6m (12 feet) lying on higher slopes and hopes to be the venue for the new speed skiing world record in the next few days. Andermatt, Engelberg and Crans Montana are among those still looking good with 3-4m upper slope base depths. Gstaad now has the deepest reported snow base in the world at 4.8m. Saas Fee and Zermatt both reported 15cm (6 inch) snowfalls at the weekend. Pyrenees In Andorra temperatures have been hitting +12C but Grandvalira say they'll be open for another fortnight to the 28th and although there's no fresh snow, more than 140km of runs are still open and upper slope base depths are up to 2m at Pas de la Casa. Spain's Baqueira Beret is still open too and will be at weekends through to May 5th. It reports 3.2m on upper slopes and says the golfing season opens this weekend down in the valley. Sierra Nevada in the south of Spain is also open in to May with a hefty snow depth to rely on. Scandinavia "It's still like February here," a spokesperson for Are, the region's leading resort, told J2ski this morning. Good news with the season still having a fortnight to run there and at several other leading Scandinavian resorts including Hemsedal over the border in Norway, and which reported 7cm of new snow this week, maintaining the 60-110cm base it's had, more-or-less for most of 2013 to date. Are's base is 83cm. In Lapland, Ruka, which normally stays open to June has a 65cm base, but Levi is the only centre to report fresh snow – 5cm of it. Scotland With the Easter Holidays over and a return to more normal lukewarm Scottish temperatures with some gale force winds and rain thrown in, Scotland's excellent 2012-13 ski season seems like it may end sooner than expected by the most optimistic. That said, snow on the top of Cairngorm does normally last and there's still top-to-bottom skiing, just about, at most of the five areas. Nevis range has announced it will only open at weekends due to lack of demand, rather than lack of snow, and gale force wind closed Glencoe at the start of the week, while the thaw looks to be affecting The Lecht the most from the webcam images. North America Canada The vast majority of Canadian ski areas are now closed although the snow is still falling in Alberta and BNC. Fernie reports nearly two feet more snow since it closed last weekend. However whistler will be open for another five weeks, and then there's summer skiing, and in Alberta Banff, Sunshine, Lake Louise and Marmot Basin will be open for up to a month more. Over in Quebec, Mont Ste Anne is still open, but at weekends only. In terms of snowfall, Whistler has had another foot (30cm) of snow and currently has a 2.4m (8 foot) base. There's also been 24cm (8 inches) for Banff/Lake Louise and 10cm for Marmot Basin – so all looking good for mid-Spring skiing. USA Most US resorts are now closed but that doesn't mean the snow has stopped falling. It seems bizarre that Colorado resorts opened in mid-late November and went a month with no significant snowfall, but have now nearly all closed but up to 90cm (three feet) of snow has fallen on the state's ski slopes in the past week, some of the biggest accumulations of the season. But that's how it's always been and to be fair there are rumours of areas reopening at weekends (Which have just been confirmed for Breckenridge, Copper Mountain and Vail as we 'go to press'). Currently three areas in the state remain open Arapahoe Basin (57cm/23 inches in past 72 hours), Aspen Highlands (60cm/24 inches in past 72 hours); Loveland (82cm/33 inches in past 72 hours) and Winter Park (62cm/25 inches in past 72 hours). It's snowing elsewhere in the West too, if not quite so much. Timberline in Oregon, the closest thing to year-round skiing in North America with a 49 week season (just closing briefly in September usually) has one of the deepest bases in the country at 4.3m (a good sign) and 30cm of fresh snow. There's also been new snow in Utah where Snowbird and Alta remain open and looking good and in California where Kirkwood will re-open this weekend after a 25cm fall and Mammoth still has one of the deepest bases in North America at 4.3m. A few resorts remain open on the east coast too and Killington reports receiving 5cm of fresh snow on Monday. |
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