J2Ski Forum Posts and Replies by snowcrazy2005

Here is a little something I posted on another forum just to get you in the mood for the winter.
I thought I would add a little Video of one of my most favourite areas to ski in the trees. Who needs to go to Canada or the USA for tree skiing when we have this in Les Arcs.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?NR=1&hl=en&v=FXkzP93zxCw

Not me in the video, Theo again, he does it all so well. But on a snowy day, you will have a good chance of finding a few of us in this forest. Steep and deep but really fun.

Had my first trip out onto the winter snow last weekend. Managed to get up to a farmhouse in the snow for the weekend with some friends. Great fun. Snow level seemed to be at about 1100m and just under 1700m we had firm snow about 12cm depth. Very rustic with log fire and oil lamps for light at night. Snow was still frozen and in OK condition on the way down. Is this the real start of the winter. Hope so, well below freezing at night. But I made the classic beginner mistake. Did not take spare batteries for the cold weather and guess what, after two shoots camera stopped working. Not happy Oh well better planning next time.

With the fresh snow that has fallen in the last few days it is starting to look good. It even seems like it is settling a little. Only two weeks to go for me.

Hi scooby7, if you are an owner and need more details about what is on offer just for you, please send me a PM as I do not put that stuff on here.

Jon, do you realize how much in winter it would cost to take a taxi from Arc 1800 to L'Ancolie. It is in Nancoix village. They have to drive down the valley and back up, not a good idea.

Better to ski there for lunch as it is very nice, but not cheap. You need to be an ok off piste skier and know the route, take a guide or you could join us if we are going.

Go on the Les Arcs thread and see the link to get in touch. If you have any other questions about Les Arcs, if you post them on the Les Arcs thread I will try to answer them.

scooby7, if you are not an owner or staying for longer than three weeks it is not worth having a season pass. For a normal pass, go to this link.

http://www.lesarcs.com/-Ski-passes-.html

You then choose what you want and see when they come on-line to buy.If you have an account you need to log in but only when the pass you want comes on-line. You will just have to keep checking.

Current conditions and news.

Fresh snow in Les Arcs again, doesn't it look nice. All the webcams seem to be working again, so time to dream of all that powder just weeks away I hope. Sun and low temps tomorrow followed by more snow as next week progresses. I might even get the skins out this weekend.

Looks like they are doing work on the transarc gondola ready for the start in a few weeks time. Even a few people in resort getting stuff ready from the emails I have had. Now we just have to hope the fresh snow stays.

Been doing the webcam thing again. Not very good news. Seems like the snowline today is up about 2200m at least. And even up to 2500m looks very thin. I hope this rain turns to snow soon. So much for an early base. The rain last weekend has done its job. Very sad.

As there does seem to be some confusion as to how to interpret the wording used by the Insurance companies regarding avalanche levels, here is a guide to what the Avalanche scale says. The details are taken from the document with the following link.
http://avalanche.state.co.us/pub/images/Publications/Greene_etal_issw06.pdf and reproduced in another thread on J2ski.

The real problem as I see it is trying to get the Insurance companies to use the same wording so that it is clear for all to understand. Maybe in the future they will start to do this.


Avalanche Risk Scale
Every modern ski resort will issue notices (bulletins) indicating the level of Avalanche Risk for each day. These risk levels are generally quoted from a five-point scale of increasing risk (of avalanche).

If you plan to ski or snowboard off-piste it is essential that you understand the Avalanche Risk Level for each local area and plan your skiing accordingly.

Five Levels of Avalanche Risk
The following Table summarises the five levels of Avalanche Risk. Note the absence of a Level Zero - there is NEVER zero risk of avalanche; except when there is no snow at all. We use the term "skier" below to indicate anyone on the snow - skier, snowboarder, climber or walker. Avalanches don't choose.

Avalanche Risk Level French Flag U.S. Color Code Snowpack Stability Avalanche probability
1 Low Risk Generally well bonded and stable. Triggering is possible by groups of skiers on a few very steep extreme slopes. Small natural avalanches (sluffs) are possible. 'Yellow Flag'
2 Moderate Less well bonded on some steep slopes, otherwise generally well bonded. Triggering is possible by groups of skiers, particularly on steep slopes. Large natural avalanches may occur but are not likely. 'Yellow Flag'
3 Considerable Moderately to weakly bonded on many steep slopes. Triggering is possible, even by individual skiers. The bulletin may indicate many slopes which are particularly affected. Medium and occasionally large natural avalanches may occur. 'Yellow and Black Flag'
4 High Weakly bonded in most places. Triggering is likely, even with single skiers, on many steep slopes. Frequent medium or large sized avalanches are likely.'Yellow and Black Flag'
5 Very High
(Extreme) Weakly bonded and largely unstable. Numerous large natural avalanches are likely, even on moderately steep terrain.
'Black Flag'
The What, Where and What to do
The following are taken from the U.S. Avalanche Danger Descriptors and give a useful summary of each level - and how you should adapt your off-piste route planning accordingly.


Danger Level Avalanche Probability and Avalanche Trigger Degree and Distribution of Avalanche Danger Recommended Action in the back country
WHAT WHY WHERE WHAT TO DO
1 Low Risk Natural avalanches very unlikely. Skier-triggered avalanches unlikely. Generally stable snow. Isolated areas of instability. Travel is generally safe. Normal caution advised.
2 Moderate Natural avalanches unlikely. Skier-triggered avalanches possible. Unstable slabs possible on steep terrain. Use caution in steeper terrain on certain aspects (defined in accompanying statement).
3 Considerable Natural avalanches possible. Skier-triggered avalanches probable. Unstable slabs probable on steep terrain. Be increasingly cautious in steeper terrain.
4 High Natural and human triggered avalanches likely. Unstable slabs likely on a variety of aspects and slope angles. Travel in avalanche terrain is not recommended. Safest travel on windward ridges of lower angle slopes without steeper terrain above.
5 Very High
(Extreme) Widespread natural or human triggered avalanches certain. Extremely unstable slabs certain on most aspects and slope angles. Large destructive avalanches possible. Travel in avalanche terrain should be avoided and travel confined to low angle terrain well away from avalanche path run-outs.

Bandit: It is more to do with when you take your board off and on, something you must do quite often when boarding. There is a chance that it will get away from you. With a leash on this is less likely to happen. I always put my leash on first before doing anything else. When riding you cannot very easily loose your board unless your bindings break, but it can happen. As for avalanches, not sure it would help much.