The huge snowfalls in the Pyrenees over the past week have led to ski areas on the French side of the southern European mountain chain reporting the first 5m+ snow depth in the world this season.
Piau Engaly reported its base had reached 5.4m (18 feet) today. It has received over 2m of snow in the last five days – the picture above was taken on Wednesday after the first 80cm had fallen.
Typically the snow depth builds through the winter at ski areas around the world, sometimes reaching 5m before the rate of thaw starts to overtake the rate of accumulation in late winter or early spring, occasionally 6m.
The areas that report the biggest snowfall most seasons, such as Niseko in Japan or Mt Baker in Washington State, USA are not normally the areas that also report the biggest snow bases – although sizable, their bases do not usually pass the 5m mark.
Grandvalira (Pas de la Casa and Soldeu) in Andorra has reported 166cm of snow in the last week, but its reported base remains little more than it was before all the snow fell, at 2.4m.
A number of resorts in the Alps including Madesimo in Italy and Andermatt in Switzerland have been reporting snow depths around 4.7 to 4.8m for most of this year, but they have not quite climbed to pass the 5m mark.