Europe Weekly Roundup #254

Alps Ski Season Endures Despite Warmth and Diminishing Runs

• Warm temperatures and afternoon rain in the Alps have significantly reduced the amount of open ski terrain, with glaciers like Hintertux down to only 7 km of runs.
• Saas Fee and Zermatt, both at higher altitudes, are faring slightly better but still face challenges due to the persistent warm weather.
• Despite the tough conditions, all four open Alpine centers plan to stay operational through summer and autumn, hoping for cooler temperatures and early snowfalls by September.

THE ALPS REPORT

It has been another warm week in the Alps, with plenty of sunshine. Daytime temperatures, even at glacier altitudes of 3,000-4,000 meters, have been getting above +10°C in the afternoons, and clouds that tend to bubble up by early evening have delivered rain rather than fresh snow. The hot sun, combined with the lack of overnight lows below zero to re-freeze the snowpack, has led to an ever-diminishing amount of open terrain. Hintertux (0/55 cm or 0/22 inches), the only ski area currently open in Austria, has dropped to only 7 km (4.5 miles) of open runs. The resort has stopped publishing current pictures on its social media and has instead moved to posting snowier images from winter, leading skiers to comment on what a sad picture the glacier currently presents and how difficult it is to ski under these conditions. A similar, though not quite as severe, situation exists at higher-altitude Saas Fee (0/280 cm or 0/112 inches) and Zermatt (0/150 cm or 0/60 inches), also accessible from Italy’s Cervinia. Both have a similar amount of runs available, perhaps a few kilometers more. Finally, Italy’s Passo Stelvio (0/200 cm or 0/80 inches) reports 4 km (2.5 miles) of available runs. All four centers are expected to continue operating their ski slopes through the rest of summer and autumn, as long as conditions allow them to remain open. The first autumn-opening centrEs are expected to join them in the latter half of September, by which time it is hoped that temperatures will have fallen again and there may have been early snowfalls at high altitudes.

THE ALPS FORECAST

It will remain warm, with the freezing point in the 4,000-4,500 meter range. Expect mostly sunny weather, but with showers developing in the afternoons. Unfortunately, these are more likely to deliver rain rather than sleet or snow due to the warm temperatures.