Messages posted by : admin
|
J2Ski Snow Report 8th September 2022
Spring is in the air in Oz, and so is Thredbo's ambassador Tess Coady... Light snow up high in the northern hemisphere. The Snow Headlines - 8th September - Rainbow is the latest NZ ski area to end its season earlier than hoped. - Alpine glaciers gear up to open for early autumn skiing as scheduled, with first light snowfalls reported. - Season in the Andes winding down; most resorts closing over next three weekends. - Less than a month until 22-23 season starts in Finland at Levi and Ruka using farmed snow. 
Spring snow for New Zealand...
World Overview It has been a quiet week for snowfall around the world with just light falls reported in most southern hemisphere resorts. Springtime has arrived in the Andes, Australia and New Zealand with more small areas announcing they've closed (or are closing this weekend) and the first of the big areas in Argentina and Chile saying that next week will be their last of 2022. In the northern hemisphere, it's the reverse situation of course with meteorological autumn underway and the astronomical version of the seasons in the final fortnight of summer. There continue to be signs of cooling but only very light snow up high so far, raising nerves at centres due to open for autumn skiing this month and especially those lined up to host World Cup opening events at the end of October. Australia A fairly steady weather week in Australia with mostly dry conditions although there was some snowfall to start the week. All ski areas remain more or less fully open with Thredbo still posting a two-metre base, the deepest in the country, whilst Perisher, which was posting that stat a week ago, has now dropped back to 185cm. It still has the most terrain open in the country though, around 64km (40 miles). Most Aussie ski areas will be open to the first weekend in October. New Zealand This week has begun fairly well in New Zealand with ski days starting with temperatures a little below freezing and quite a lot of blue sky weather. Mount Hutt even reported over 20cm of fresh snowfall on Monday – Tuesday, the biggest snowfall reported anywhere in the world in the last seven days. The good times did follow a bad end to last week though with more 130kph winds, more warmth and more rain. This has left Rainbow the latest of the smaller areas to announce it was having to close for the 2022 season earlier than they'd hoped. Mount Hutt and Cardrona currently have about 90% of their terrain open and are posting the (joint) most terrain open in the country. The Remarkables has the country's deepest top to bottom base with 170 to 150cm lying. Weather looks like it should stay sunny for most through the weekend with the next chance of snowfall at the start of next week. South America It has been another largely dry week in the Andes with the last significant snowfalls now three weeks ago for most areas, although some have had a few centimetres/an inch or two, at the start of this week. Most remain open although we are nearing the end of the season faster here for the majority of resorts than for Australia and New Zealand. Most will close the weekend after this and almost all of the resorts by the final Sunday of September. That said, for the final weeks, temperatures should still get below freezing overnight even if they creep up towards double figures (Celsius) by the afternoons. Most ski areas have at least two-thirds of their terrain still open, although it's noticeable that that percentage is down from a week ago and resort level snow cover getting thin at the continent's biggest area, Catedral near Bariloche in Argentina. Catedral still, just about, has the most terrain open in the world and the 2.5m upper slope base depth at Nevados de Chillán over the border in Chile remains the deepest that anywhere is reporting. Europe We still have just the Hintertux Glacier in Austria open to the skiing public with a thin coating of machine-made snow on 6km of its glacier slopes. Temperatures have been dipping below freezing on glaciers overnight though and not climbing high above freezing even in the afternoons so things are looking more promising for ski areas like Solden, Val Senales and Pitztal due to start their 22-23 seasons later this month as well as Saas Fee, Zermatt, Passo Stelvio and others aiming to re-open. Hintertux has begun promoting its terrain park opening on September 30th anyway, with the Stubai announcing they are opening a fortnight later. There have been light snowfalls in recent days which are a promising sign but we're still waiting for something more significant. Some do have all-weather snowmakers or stored 'farmed' snow from last season that may allow them to open small areas even without fresh snowfall. It's cooler in Scandinavia too where Norway's Fonna glacier announced its summer season was over. Galdhopiggen remains open to teams though and hopes to re-open to all when conditions improve. North America After the early snowfalls up high in recent weeks in the Rockies and elsewhere, it has turned warmer once more so there's little sign of winter on its way this week in the mountains. But it is of course and there's a hope that ski areas in Colorado will begin snowmaking by the end of this month (that's Loveland's target at least) and begin to open next. A report by the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration in the US has predicted a 'triple dip La Nina' affecting winter weather with more precipitation for most. That's not guaranteed of course but the triple dip refers to three successive winters of La Ninas and that now has a cumulative impact of a 1.2-degree dip in temperatures since 2019 which will hopefully be good news when combined with more precipitation. |
|
|
J2Ski Snow Report 1st September 2022
Falls Creek, Australia, seeing signs of Spring this week... Seasons on the turn, north and south. The Snow Headlines - 1st September - New Zealand's Mt Lyford first in southern hemisphere to close for 22 after warm wet weather. - Les 2 Alpes announces it's hosting World Cup Skier and Boardercross races next month. - 2022 season ends on schedule in Southern Africa. - Ski areas in New South Wales reach 2 metre base depths. - First snowfall of pre-season in Teton mountains in the northern US. - Only one centre open in Europe still with three others 'on hold' until conditions improve. - Rain reported in Australia to start the week, but conditions then turn a little more wintery. - First ski area ends 2022 season in South American Andes. - Five weeks until the largest ski areas in Finland aim to open for 22-23 with snowfarmed snow. 
Spring in the air in the southern hemisphere, autumn coming in the north...
World Overview There's something of an end-of-the-season feel in the southern hemisphere with the first centres in the Andes and New Zealand, as well as the only one that had been open in Southern Africa, all announcing the end to their 2022 seasons. Most others will continue to late September or early October but the weather is definitely getting warmer, particularly by the afternoons almost everywhere, albeit with many areas still seeing temperatures drop below freezing overnight. In other words classic springtime freeze-thaw 24-hour cycles. In the Northern Hemisphere, there remains just one centre open – the Hintertux glacier in Austria- thanks to its snowmaking effort just about keeping it ahead of thawing temperatures. Other centres in the alps and Scandinavia are ready to reopen once it gets colder (and hopefully some high-altitude snowfall arrives) with September and October start dates for dozens more coming up fast. Africa – the only continent to have ski areas in both northern and southern hemispheres – has seen the scheduled end of the 2022 ski season in the south at Afriski in Lesotho which turned the lifts off until 2023 on Thursday. It means we currently only have ski areas operating on three continents. Australia A fairly calm week for weather in Australia with plenty of blue sky days, and temperatures warming with the arrival of a front moving in from the West with a little rain on Monday, later turning to snowfall. Conditions remain good for the time of year though with most centres sitting on at least a metre of snow, some half as much again, healthy stats for Aussie resorts. Perisher and Thredbo now report their snow is two metres deep up top, a very good stat for Aussie skiing. They along with Falls Creek, Mount Buller and Hotham are all fully open and continue to face issues at peak times, particularly weekends, with having enough space to fit in everyone wanting to ski or board with them. New Zealand New Zealand's ski areas have had a tough time with warm weather over the latter half of August and at least one small area (Mount Lyford) has, frustrated, announced it has had to end its 2022 season. But the rest have soldiered on and have been rewarded by generally improving conditions over the past week, with low temperatures in some places cold enough for snowmaking. Most of the major South Island resorts like Cardrona and Mount Hutt remain fully open, whilst on the North Island Mount Ruapehu continues to battle its most challenging winter in decades for lack of snow and warm weather - but is currently seeing slow improvements and is gradually opening more terrain at Whakapapa. South America There's been quite a springlike feel to the weather at most ski areas in the Andes for about a fortnight now since the last big snowfall, with freeze-thaw conditions and while overnight lows have been dropping just below freezing still daytime highs have hit double digits Celsius. The continent's largest ski area by uplift, Argentina's Cerro Catedral near Bariloche, has the most terrain open of any ski area in the world at present – about 90km (57 miles) of slopes and Chile's Nevados de Chillan is posting the world's deepest snowpack at 3.5 metres. Against this, the thaw at Lagunillas, one of the closest resorts to the capital Santiago, has led to it ending its 22-23 season. The weather will continue similar except in the south where it should be much colder and snowier to close out this week. Most ski areas in South America end their seasons in the latter half of September. Europe September usually sees up to 10 ski areas open for autumn glacier skiing leading into the 22-23 ski season but it is unclear how many will actually be able to open due to a lack of summer snowfall and by contrast, hot weather on glaciers melting what snow there was lying at the end of last winter. Some glaciers have all-weather snowmaking systems and/or have saved snow under cover from the previous winter (snow farming) meaning they can potentially open limited terrain this month. For now, it remains just Hintertux in the Austrian Tirol with a thin cover of icy, machine-made snow on about three miles of slopes, that are open to the public. Saas Fee, in Switzerland, along with Fonna and Galdhopiggen up in Norway have terrain open for ski racer training and Italy's Passo Stelvio and Zermatt continue to have their slopes 'on hold' while they await an improvement in conditions in order to re-open. North America There are currently no outdoor ski areas open in North America (you can ski indoors at the Big Snow indoor snow centre in New Jersey) but anticipation is building for the start of the 22-23 ski season. After snowfalls first in Alaska and then in the Colorado Rockies it's the Tetons of Wyoming and the northern US that have seen their first snow coverings up high over the last week. The first ski areas in the US aim to open in October each year and Colorado's Loveland has a start-of-snowmaking countdown clock on its site with a target start date at the end of this month. |
|
|
J2Ski Snow Report 25th August 2022
Thredbo, Australia, looking sweet yesterday... Great conditions in Oz, a little snow elsewhere The Snow Headlines - 25th August - First snow of 22-23 pre-season reported on high summits in Colorado. - Last week of the 2022 season underway in southern Africa. - Only one outdoor ski area still open in the northern hemisphere. - New Zealand hit by warm end to last week, but then the snow returned. - Six weeks to opening day at Levi and Ruka in Lapland thanks to snow farming. - Japan announces virus restrictions easing at the border. 
A dusting on the tops in Europe, light snow in the southern hemisphere...
World Overview Australia and the Andes probably had the best of the conditions over the past week, with repeat snowfall adding up to 50cm more to Aussie slopes and the Andes basking in beautiful conditions under blue skies following last week's big dump. Not so good news for New Zealand alas as the warm, wet storm that blew in at the end of last week had a big negative impact on snow conditions. It has turned colder and snowier in recent days though so there is hope. We'll be down to ski areas open in only five countries on three continents by this time next week with Africa's only currently open ski area due to end its 2022 season next week, following on from North America's last still open area at the weekend. So the number of countries and continents offering skiing will have more or less halved compared to two months ago. Europe is currently hanging in there with only one ski area open to the public. There are positive signs for the run-in to winter 22-23 in the northern hemisphere though, which has pretty much started with the news of snowfall dustings in Colorado last week and that it's only six weeks until the first resorts are due to open for next season in Lapland. Resorts in the Alps will be opening sooner still if there's a decent snowfall soon. In the wider world, Japan has announced further easing to travel restrictions in place due to the pandemic, making it seem more likely that it will be possible to travel there again this winter. Australia It's been a good week for Australian ski areas with several snowstorms, one at the end of last week, and another at the start of this, which brought about half a metre of new snow in total to higher slopes. Coupled with this, temperatures staying below freezing and with the sun out again, it's a winning combination. It should stay mostly dry and temperatures climb a little into the weekend. The country's largest resort, Perisher, reports 100 trails open and almost all 50 lifts turning. Other areas are also running at capacity. New Zealand The warm rain storms that hit New Zealand in the latter half of last week were a major setback, once again turning conditions on their head after a fantastic weekend and start to last week before the storm blew in. After the storm, resorts still open like Mount Hutt reported reduced terrain, warm temperatures and "early spring-like conditions" but some smaller centres said the damage to the snowpack was so great they'd have to remain closed until things improved. Fortunately, things did start to improve from Saturday as things turned back to wintery and Cardrona posted six inches of fresh snowfall, with other South Island centres receiving similar. Colder weather and more snowfall arrived on Wednesday although some centres remain closed. Unfortunately, Mount Ruapehu, home to Turoa and Whakapapa ski areas on the North Island, is having a particularly hard time with warm temperatures all winter so far and the latest hit damaging what terrain they had managed to open. They're now reporting the 2022 season as their worst in decades. South America The latest snowstorms to hit the Andes brought another week of powder to the slopes of Argentina and Chile, with Portillo reporting it had passed the 4-metres seasonal snowfall to date figure. It and most of the continent's other ski areas have been reporting their slopes 100% open and excellent conditions. For most, there are 3-4 weeks of the 2022 season left to run although some will stay open to early October. Chile's Nevados de Chillán is reporting the deepest base in the world at 3.5 metres (nearly 12 feet) up top and Argentina's Catedral near Bariloche has the most terrain open in any one area – around 100km (63 miles) of slopes. Africa It's the final weekend of the 2022 season coming up in southern Africa with Lesotho's Afriski due to close on September 1st after a three-month season. It has had wintery weather almost to the end but daytime highs are now getting into double figures Celsius regularly and although overnight lows are still cold enough for snowmaking, things are definitely becoming more and more spring-like. Europe As the seasons change, nerves may be stretching still further in the high Alps where half-a-dozen ski areas would normally aim to open glacier runs in September but may have to delay this year until there's a big snowfall up high. That could, of course, arrive anytime, and temperatures have been cooling, especially overnight, but we're yet to see anything too spectacular snowfall-wise. Italy's Passo Stelvio ski area, as well as Saas Fee and Zermatt in Switzerland and the Galdhopiggen glacier ski area in Norway also say they'll re-open as soon as conditions allow. But for now, it remains only Hintertux in the Austrian Tirol as the only resort still open for summer skiing in Europe, with 6km of "very icy" runs possible thanks to snowmaking on their glacier. Saas Fee, Galdhopiggen and a second Norwegian glacier, Fonna, are all believed to be still open to race teams for training, but not to the general public. North America The last area still open in North America since 2022, Timberline in Oregon, closed at the weekend, so we now begin the build-up to winter 22-23, potentially only two months away with the first snowmaking guns often fired up at the end of September on high slopes in Colorado. Just to raise spirits the first snowfall on high peaks in the state was reported late last week on peaks near Alma in the Mosquito Range. It was the earliest snowfall reported in the state in four years. The thin cover had melted within 12 hours but it was enough to get ski social media excited. Since then more snow dustings have been reported at other high points in Colorado including the former ski area of Berthoud Pass Near Winter Park Resort. |
|
|
J2Ski Snow Report 18th August 2022
Cardrona, New Zealand, on a chilly morning last week... Great conditions in New Zealand, and fabulous in the Andes The Snow Headlines - 18th August - World's deepest reported snowpack now in Southern Hemisphere for first time this year. - The final weekend of the 21-22 season coming up for North America. - Scandinavia's summer ski season ends suddenly - sooner than previously announced. - Ski areas in New Zealand report sublime conditions; clear skies after big snowfalls. - Resort in Chile says July was its snowiest in over a decade. - Hintertux likely to be the only ski area open in Northern hemisphere as of next Monday. - Southern Africa's Afriski resort announces 2022 season ends September 1st. 
See where it's going to snow this week...
World Overview New Zealand's ski areas had a great weekend and start of this week with cold, sunny weather following fresh snowfall - and it has been dumping again in Australia and the Andes. In Southern Africa, the 2022 season is winding down to its last weekend at the end of this month. In the northern hemisphere, it's the final week (at last) of the 21-22 season for North America with Timberline, the only centre still open in the US, closing down for skiers at the end of the coming weekend. In Scandinavia Norway's Fonna glacier had planned to close on Sunday too but brought forward its closing day to Wednesday so has now closed. This leaves Hintertux in the Austrian Tirol as the only area open in the northern hemisphere – if it manages to keep open despite the ongoing heat and its thin snow cover. Australia Conditions have continued to improve on Australia's ski slopes after the 'blip' of the warm, wet storm a fortnight ago. There have been several significant snow storms over the past seven days, bolstering snow depths with around six to eight weeks of the season remaining. Snowstorms delivered up to about 20cm of snow by the end of last week, followed at the start of this week by still bigger dumps meaning some areas have had over half a metre of fresh snow in the last seven days. Conditions were at times stormy with strong winds impacting some lift operations, but then there's the payback of fresh pow. Most Aussie resorts are fully open with Perisher, Thredbo, Hotham and Falls Creek all reporting around a metre-and-a-half (five feet) of snow lying on their upper slopes. New Zealand Conditions were at their best of the season over the weekend for many ski areas in New Zealand. The last storm fronts at the end of last week dumped yet more powder but gave way to perfect weather over the weekend and the start of this week – blue skies, light wind and temperatures just a degree or two below freezing – the result, sublime fresh snow conditions. Most centres were fully open and while the deepest reported snow depth is 3 metres/10 feet now, most centres have a healthy 1-2 metres of snow piled on their slopes. Unfortunately, things took a downturn on Tuesday/Wednesday with warm/wet weather again closing ski centres for a few days, but things are expected to improve again from Thursday/Friday. Once operating, Mount Hutt and Cardrona have the largest amount of terrain open (40km/25 miles) and Mount Ruapehu on the North Island continues to open more terrain at its Turoa and Whakapapa bases. South America It has been a snowy week in the Andes too with the latest front moving into most areas on Sunday and accumulations of up to 50cm reported by midweek and plenty of powder to be had. Chile's Nevados de Chillan reported that July had already been its snowiest in a decade so as we enter the final third of the season, the latest snowfall means winter 2022 is shaping up to be one of the snowiest of the century so far. Catedral near Bariloche is reporting the most terrain open of any ski area in the world at present and most centres have at least a metre of snow lying, many now double that. The snowfall of the past three days should clear for the remainder of the week giving sunny skies for enjoying the fresh pow to the max. Africa It's coming up to the last week of the 2022 season next week at Lesotho's Afriski and temperatures are yoyoing between warmer days but still freezing nights. There has been some fresh snowfall however. It's been mostly sunny, as it usually is, and the main run remains open. Afriski says it will close its season on 1st September. Europe Yet another week of mostly sunny conditions and temperatures above freezing even above 3,000m altitude isn't great news for what's left of the snow not yet thawed from glaciers (most has and thaw rates are reported to be three times the summer norm of the past decade). Fonna in Norway said they'll be closing this Sunday but on Wednesday this week made a quick change announcing they were closing to recreational skiers immediately. This means that only Austria's Hintertux, with a thin and icy snow surface, is still open to the public in Europe. It seems to be keeping the 6km of slopes it has open thanks to summer glacier snowmaking when overnight lows dip down enough. Three other centres, the previously mentioned Fonna as well as Galdhopiggen in Norway and Saas-Fee in Switzerland have limited terrain available all reserved only for race teams training. Several more including Italy's Passo Stelvio and Zermatt say they'll re-open if and when conditions improve. North America It's the final few days of North America's 21-22 ski season which began around 10 months ago high up in Colorado, but for the past few months has had just one area still open – Timberline on Mount Hood in Oregon. As in Europe, it has been a largely hot summer here, but unlike the Alps there were some big snow dumps in the spring (after the main season ended), giving timberline a strong hand moving into the late spring and summer season. The heat has been Fairly relentless though and the Sunday 21st closure represents a pretty good season, if not quite making it to the first weekend of September as in years past. North America's 22-23 season will hopefully start in about two months' time in October. |
|
|
J2Ski Snow Report 11th August 2022
Treble Cone, New Zealand, now plans to be open into October. Nice! Snow in the Andes, and more wild weather for Australia and New Zealand The Snow Headlines - 11th August - Fresh snowfall in Australia after a major storm closes slopes with rain and gales. - The last ski area open to the public in the Alps still hanging on despite warm temps. - First significant snowfall for several weeks in the Andes. - The last area still open in North America announces closing day. - First fresh snow of 22-23 reported on mountain peaks in Northern Alaska. - Norway's Fonna latest to announce summer ski closing date on 21 August. - More storms hit New Zealand, with significant snow showers then great conditions. - New Zealand's Treble Cone extends ski season by a week to 2nd October. 
A lot of snow on the charts for South America, and some top-ups down-under!
World Overview It has been a snowy week for most ski centres in the southern hemisphere with resorts in Australia, the Andes and New Zealand all reporting considerable fresh snowfall. Unfortunately, this arrived with stormy weather, most damaging in Australia where the huge storm that hit at the end of last week was not very wintery – but warm, wet and windy for its first 48 hours. It did though deposit snow in its final day which repaired much of the damage. In the northern hemisphere the impact of the record-breaking summer temperatures at altitude continues to be felt. Only two centres remain open to the public, with just one in the Alps, and its conditions for operating are marginal in the extreme. The only positive is a slight drop in temperatures hopefully marking a change to something more sustainable for the ice. Two centres are open in Norway still but one only to race teams, the other announcing it'll end its season in just over a week. The last area open in North America, Timberline, has announced its season will also end the weekend after next, but by then it'll be less than two months until the 22-23 season should kick off in Colorado and elsewhere. Australia After a relatively stable first half of the season with most areas fully open thanks to excellent early season snowfall, Australian resorts had a bit of a shock to the system as a huge storm hit on Thursday/Friday last week, just as our last report came out. Unfortunately this was more of a warm and wet storm rather than a wintery one and the result was water damage to snow surfaces and some localized flooding. By Friday night though temperatures had dipped and fresh snow was dumping, for a good re-set. On Saturday morning Perisher reported 15cm (6") of fresh snowfall, Falls Creek 17cm (7") and Mt Hotham 28cm (11"). Snow showers have continued since but at a more measured rate. New Zealand While the wild weather in Australia and South America (see below) is not such a frequent occurrence, in New Zealand it is very much the norm and we've had another week of highs and lows – in both weather systems and mood! Multiple systems have moved through once more bringing further heavy snow showers (some centres have again posted more than half a metre of fresh this past week in total). The snowstorms and accompanying gales have, once more closed access roads and/or slopes/lifts prevention centres from operating until these were cleared and made safe. In the days between though there have been more epic powder days. Resorts posted up to 50cm of fresh snow and winds dropping on Wednesday for fantastic conditions. Mount Hutt now has over 1.5 metres of snow lying on its lower slopes, Temple Basin has double that up high. It has, once more, been the South Island benefitting the most with Ruapehu still running behind on terrain it has been able to open so far – though it is a steadily improving picture. South America Most ski areas in Chile and some in Argentina were hit by a major snowstorm at the start of the weekend with reports of up to 28cm (11") of snowfall in 24 hours. The world-famous centre of Portillo was one of the big winners although Nevados de Chillan to the south continues to post the deepest base in the country and the southern hemisphere with 3.5 metres (nearly 12 feet) of snow reported on its upper slopes. Since the snowfall it's been back to dry and sunny conditions giving some great powder days. The next chance for snowfall looks to be early next week. Africa Lesotho's Afriski was in newspapers all over the world at the weekend as news agency The Associated Press ran a story contrasting the fact that people were skiing in Africa with the heat in Europe. The centre, which has a three month ski season that runs to the end of August, reported more snowfall to start the week, albeit rather wet stuff, but overnight lows continue to freeze the snowpack and allow for more snow making. Europe The picture in the Alps continues to be rather dire with webcam images showing the grey glacial ice completely exposed at former summer ski centres and temperatures remaining well above freezing to high above the altitude the ice lies at – a very depressing picture. Hintertux is the only resort currently open, just, maintaining a few white streaks of snow close to its upper station at 3,250m and maintaining its 'open-365-days' reputation (pandemic/weather permitting). Zermatt, the other resort that had claimed that, remains closed while it awaits better weather, as does Italy's Passo Stelvio. It's believed that Saas Fee does have similar terrain to Hintertux on its higher glacier slope still open to race teams only though. Looking for positives, overnight lows on glaciers are now getting back to freezing, even a degree or two below, so things appear to be moving in the right direction. There are two centres still open in Scandinavia, but the only one open to the public, Fonna, announced on Tuesday it would end its season early, a week on Sunday (21st August) and the other Galdhopiggen is operating like Saas Fee, only for pre-booked race team training. North America It has been yet another hot and sunny week in Western North America where the only ski area still open, Timberline on Mount Hood in Oregon, has announced it will end its ski season – which began last fall and is one of the world's longest at more than nine months duration – on 21st August, the weekend after next. For now though the centre still has about a mile and a half of runs open and a snow depth of about six feet. When it closes we'll only be about two months away from the start of the 22-23 season, all being well, in Colorado, and early snowfall has already been reported this week on mountain tops in northern Alaska. |
|
|
J2Ski Snow Report 4th August 2022
Nevados de Chillan, Chile, has over 3 metres snow depth right now... Wild weather and snow for Australia and New Zealand The Snow Headlines - 4th August - Snowstorms hit Australia and New Zealand bringing powder after gales and rain. - Apex ski resort in Canada evacuated due to wildfire. - Hintertux glacier the only one still open to the public in the Alps. - Japan's Gassan, the last Asian ski area still open, ends 2022 ski season. - Fresh snowfall reported in Lesotho, Southern Africa. 
Big snow possible for South Island, NZ and a dusting at the top in the Alps
World Overview Australia and New Zealand have seen the most snowfall over the past week with some ski areas in the latter seeing as much as 60cm (two feet) in total through multiple storms over the last seven days. Once skies have cleared and roads and lifts dug out there have been some spectacular powder days between the storms. The storms themselves have brought very strong winds and blizzard conditions at times though, closing centres for a day or two whilst they blow through. Australia is, unfortunately, now being hit by another huge storm but this time with warmer temperatures bringing rain initially, turning to snow at the weekend though. In Europe, continuing warm weather at high altitudes continues to impact summer skiing and is causing anxiety for those ski areas due to open for autumn glacier skiing next month. Only one resort is open (to everyone) in the Alps, an all-time low, but there are two summer ski centres to choose from in Scandinavia. Elsewhere, Timberline remains the only centre open in North America and the final area that had still been open in Asia, Japan's Gassan, finally ended its 2022 season on Sunday. Australia A week of heaven then frustration it seems for Australia's ski areas. The good conditions that have dominated the season so far continued through the weekend and were boosted by a 15-20cm snowfall giving powder conditions on Monday morning. Hotham hit the 1-metre snow depth mark and Perisher had every lift turning, every run open. But things have taken a downturn over the past 48 hours with gales and rain showers impacting the snowpack and several resorts including Thredbo closing for the worst of it. Things should improve as we approach the weekend though with the weather cooler once more and a return of snowfall to end the week. New Zealand New Zealand has had a similar weather roller coaster, although that's less unusual there. Here too there was a fresh snowfall, but with 20-40cm totals and a little earlier – in time for the weekend. So conditions were sublime Sunday-Monday. But many areas were closed Tuesday-Wednesday as the next storm moved through, bringing some very violent wind gusts as well as more snowfall – in other words, blizzard conditions. The overall picture is good though with most of the country's ski areas including the main players like Cardrona, Mt Hutt and Treble Cone sitting on healthy bases and with everything open (when storms allow). Mt Ruapehu on the North Island (Turoa and whakapapa) which has had a slow start to its season for lack of snow has also benefitted from the snowfall and is rapidly opening more terrain. South America It has been a quieter week in South America with plenty of sunshine, although the last few days have seen a front bring decent fresh snowfalls to many areas. The continent's largest area, Catedral near Bariloche, continues to offer the most terrain currently open in any one area in the world with around 50 miles (80km) of slopes open. Over in Chile the southerly ski area of Nevados de Chillan is posting the deepest snow in the southern hemisphere at 3.5 metres up high while the famous resort of Portillo has announced its famous Roca Jack extreme run is open for the first time in three winters. Africa August has started well at Afriski in Lesotho with several snowfalls over the past week. These caused minor overnight access problems that were soon cleared and helped replenish snow cover on the main run which has also been topped up with snowmaking. The season here is due to last to the end of the month. Europe We have the previously unheard-of situation of there being more ski areas open in Scandinavia than the Alps this week, although the numbers are low: 2 to 1. The Galdhøpiggen summer ski centre is believed to have re-opened after a three-week shutdown to "preserve the snow". It joins Norway's other open summer ski area, Fonna. In the Alps, only one ski area remains open, just, although as the heat continues it's unclear if it will be able to continue through August. The (hopefully still) year-round ski area of Hintertux has a few kilometres of runs still open up high with less than a foot of snow cover remaining. Saas-Fee also has a small part of its glacier open but continues to restrict access to race teams' training. Britain's Dave Ryding was seen there this week. North America Timberline ski resort on Mount Hood in Oregon remains the only ski area open in North America with skiers and boarders continuing to enjoy the snow on its Palmer snowfield – scheduled to remain open for much of this month. The snowpack there is down to about six feet having been triple that three months ago, but then it has been a long hot summer. Unfortunately, wildfires continue to emerge across North America, sometimes close to ski areas, with Apex Mountain in BC the latest to be at risk. The 200 or so people who live in the resort year-round were evacuated on Monday. |
|
|
J2Ski's Where to Ski in August 2022
Perisher, Australia, got a good start to August Australia wins on early August snow! August marks the last full month of winter in the southern hemisphere and almost all ski resorts in Australia, Argentina, Chile, New Zealand and Lesotho should be open all month. 2022 has seen good snowfalls in the Andes, Australia and, on the whole, New Zealand, meaning most resorts now have good bases and most or all of their terrain open. In the Northern Hemisphere, August is the last full month of Summer and many resorts will be hoping the heat will ease and there'll perhaps be some early snowfalls up high. There are no ski areas open in Asia, just one centre in North America (due to close in the latter half of August) and a handful open in the Alps and Scandinavia. In fact, the numbers of areas open for August in Europe are sadly at an all-time low, after the hot spring and summer.
Australia 2022 has been a great season for Australian resorts and August looks like it should continue the pattern of the first half of winter. All of the country's resorts are fully open and with a healthy metre or so of snow lying. Falls Creek, Hotham, Thredbo, Perisher and the rest have all been reporting great snow cover after huge falls at the season start in early June, with mostly cold weather and regular top-ups since. New Zealand Kiwi ski areas have had more of a roller coaster winter 2022 so far with frequent big snowfalls but also issues caused by gales and spells of warm weather, the latter sometimes bringing torrential rain instead of snow, particularly to lower elevations. That said, most of the country's ski areas are now open and with fairly healthy depths, particularly up high. The season for most areas lasts to late September or early October so all should stay open – weather permitting – through August. Mount Hutt, Cardrona and Coronet Peak all have more than 1.5m snow depths at the start of August and Treble Cone has one of the world's deepest at present at over 2 metres. South America Like Australia, it has been a season to remember so far in the Andes, where a number of the biggest and best-known ski areas including Chile's Portillo and Valle Nevado and Argentina's Las Lenas are opening for the first time since winter 2019. In any case, it's the first time in three seasons that international guests have been able to travel to Argentina and Chile. There have been big snowfalls in the first half of the season, with some areas claiming the best conditions in a decade. The continent's largest area, Cerro Catedral near Bariloche in Argentina is fully open meaning it has the largest lift-accessed ski area in the world open right now. Europe Seven glaciers had been due to be open through all or most of August in the Alps and Scandinavia. However all are battling the impact of hot weather which has caused several glacier areas that should be open now to close temporarily and we start the month with only one open to the public in the Alps, two in Norway. Of the four still open at the time of writing, Saas-Fee is open in Switzerland (but only to race teams), as is the Hintertux glacier in Austria. The Galdhoppigen and Fonna glaciers are also open in Norway. Italy's Passo Stelvio and Zermatt in Switzerland (its glacier also accessible from Cervinia) are temporarily closed and hope to re-open if conditions allow. Les 2 Alpes in France does not now plan to reopen this summer. It's the first time this century there's no August skiing possible in France or Italy. No other centres are scheduled to open in August, with September usually seeing the first half-dozen or so glaciers opening for their 22-23 seasons. The question is whether we see more issues caused by the hot summer sun or a return of cooler weather and perhaps fresh snow up high as the seasons start to turn. Most Augusts see a bit of both. North America Almost all ski centres in Canada and the US are currently closed. However, the Palmer permanent snowfield above Timberline resort on Mt Hood in Oregon remains open at least for the first half of August. It has been open since November last year and if you discount Europe's year-round centres is the only resort on the planet still open for its 21-22 ski season! Africa Although South Africa's Tiffindell ski area has not opened (for the third successive winter), the Afriski resort in neighbouring Lesotho is open and due to complete its 2022 season at the end of August. Indoors Although the last outdoor ski area still open in Asia ended its 2022 season in July, more than 50 indoor snow centres remain open across the continent. There are more than 50 other indoor snow centres operating on the other five populated continents with Antarctica now the only one not to have one. In fact, there are now more indoor snow centres operating than outdoor ski areas worldwide from around June to September, although not all of the 100+ indoor centres in 30+ countries offer skiing and boarding, about a third are for "snow experience" only. |
|
|
J2Ski Snow Report 28th July 2022
Can you guess where this is? It's Afriski, in Lesotho, Africa! New Zealand gets the goods, again... The Snow Headlines - 28th July - More snowfall in New Zealand. - Italy's Passo Stelvio latest glacier to close, no summer skiing in France or Italy now. - Zermatt will close as well, temporarily, from Friday, July 29th. - Police close roads to Aussie ski resorts at weekend as carparks full. - Final week of the 2022 season at Japan's Gassan summer ski area. - Deepest base in the southern hemisphere reaches 3.5m (nearly 12 feet). - Fresh snowfall in Africa. 
More inbound for New Zealand...
World Overview After the heavy snowfall across southern hemisphere ski slopes earlier this month the past week has been much quieter, although most centres - even Afriski in Lesotho - have reported some fresh snow; just much lighter accumulations than before. Bases are going in the right direction almost everywhere though with the thickest snowpack now up to 3.5 metres, in the Andes. Pretty much the opposite is the case in the northern hemisphere with more hot weather continuing to impact the snowpack even at high altitudes up on glaciers. Passo Stelvio and Zermatt are the latest Alpine glaciers forced to suspend their summer skiing leaving only three glaciers open to the public in Europe as we enter August, a new all-time low in a summer of all-time lows. One centre remains open in North America too with the last still open in Asia due to end its 2022 run this coming weekend. Australia A second fairly quiet week on Aussie slopes in terms of snowfall after the big dump almost a fortnight ago. Most ski areas have been publishing fairly sublime conditions with light snowfalls freshening up slope surfaces, pretty much everywhere open and plenty of sunshine. First-hand (rather than marketing) snow reports have been a little less enthusiastic with the snow described as "heavy and wet" by one visitor to Falls Creek at the weekend. But that hasn't impacted enthusiasm - with the police turning around skiers and boarders trying to drive to Perisher and Thredbo mid-morning on Saturday as the car parks were full. New Zealand A much better week these last seven days than the week before. Ski areas reported fabulous conditions at the weekend after things settled down following a fresh snowfall that ended a few days of storm closures for many. The business was such that several areas had to announce they'd hit capacity early on Saturday and Sunday. There was another snowfall, quite significant (20-40cm) for some, midweek. Treble Cone is still posting the country's deepest base at around 2.5 metres (eight feet) but most South Island areas have almost all runs open and a decent base. Things are improving on the North Island where there's been much less snowfall and the country's largest resort, Mt Ruapehu, has struggled to open much terrain so far. They announced a major lift opening at the Whakapapa base at the weekend. South America The heavy snowfall earlier this month has eased over the last week but there have still been some smaller 'top up' snow showers and there's plenty of powder to be found in the backcountry for those arriving with a guide. The continent's largest area, Catedral near Bariloche in Argentina, has almost all of its terrain open – about 100km of slopes, and in fact the largest area open in the world at present. Chile's Nevados de Chillán, one of the country's more southerly ski centres, really got dumped on in the early July storms and is posting the continent's (and the southern hemisphere's) deepest base with 3.5m (nearly 12 feet) of snow lying on its higher slopes. Africa There's been some fresh snowfall at Afriski in Lesotho, which actually caused some access problems on the high pass over from South Africa. These have been resolved now and temperatures varying between subzero and plus 10C have led to issues like fog at times. For now, everything remains open and there are about four weeks of the 2022 season left. Europe More bad news from the Alps alas as the ongoing hot weather following the drier-than-usual winter takes its toll on glacier summer ski centres. Passo Stelvio and Zermatt are the latest to close due to these conditions, noting the freezing point was high above the highest mountain peaks day and night. Passo Stelvio is already closed, Zermatt will join it from Friday. Stelvio has still maintained a small cat skiing operation for race teams on a remaining snow patch but, for now, the lifts have closed. That means only three glaciers remain open to the public – all with thin cover – with none left open at present in France or Italy. Two of the three are in Norway, Fonna and (re-opening this weekend), Goldhopiggen, the first time more have been open in Scandinavia than the Alps. Hintertux in the Austrian Tirol, the only other ski area besides Zermatt to try to open every day of the year, is now the only centre still open in the Alps. However, its base is rapidly thinning too and slopes open have dropped from 20km to 6km in the last week. Saas-Fee is also open but only with about half of its usual glacier area open and only to pre-booked race teams. Both Passo Stelvio and Zermatt say they'll re-open as soon as conditions improve. So far though the weather remains stubbornly warm, even at altitude. North America The talk in North America has all been of very high fire danger due to high temperatures and drought rather than snow, but one ski area remains open high on Mount hood in Oregon, above the Timberline ski area, despite the heat in the 80s and 90s (F) down in the valley below. The snow is thawing fast on the Palmer snowfield but is still reported to be about six feet deep and it is hoping to make it through to the end of August. A snowpark is also open above Copper Mountain in Colorado but only to those signed up for private camps. Asia It's the final weekend of Asia's lift-accessed 21-22 season coming up with the last area still open, Gassan in Japan, ending its season on Sunday. The base there started at 8 metres when it opened in August but is now down to 50cm left in patches up high which need to be hiked to from the top of the double chairlift. |
|