WORLD SNOW ROUNDUP #202
Issued: 04 August 2021
By Patrick “Snowhunter” Thorne
European Roundup
North American Roundup
Asia Roundup
Southern Hemisphere
WORLD OVERVIEW
We’re at around the halfway point of the 2021 ski season in the Southern Hemisphere and the one thing we can say is that it’s going a lot better than the 2020 season at this point in terms of ski areas open. The pandemic continues to have a big impact, more so on some areas than others. But for probably a larger proportion of ski areas, it’s the more traditional factor of snow cover that’s the bigger issue this winter.
Things still are far from great in the Andes with warm weather and sunshine limiting all areas from opening much terrain and some areas from opening at all still. But it is the pandemic, and the continued closure of Chile’s international borders, that have led the famous report of Portillo to announce this week that it won’t be opening at all this winter.
Snow cover continues to be problematic in New Zealand where resorts have reported good snowfalls this week, but also rain and ‘springlike’ weather at times. This leaves Australia, where pandemic lockdowns continue to be an issue, posting the best conditions in the world right now and the deepest snow depths for the start of August in over 20 years, following a fortnight now of cold and snowy weather.
In Europe, another summer ski area that had been expected to stay open in August announced that all its snow cover on the glacial ice had melted away so it was closing early. This, along with the scheduled summer ski season-ending at another centre, means we are down to just five centres open in the Alps for August 23021.
As there’s only one other lift-accessed area open in the Northern Hemisphere, Timberline in Oregon, USA, that actually puts us down to half a dozen centres left open in the Northern Hemisphere.
The last ski area open in Asia has now closed so we have removed this section until centres start to reopen there in the autumn. The same is true for Scandinavia in Europe.
EUROPE INTRODUCTION
As mentioned in the World Overview there was a small surprise our last snow report went live as the operators of the Molltal Glacier, in Austria, announced it would close after last weekend due to the glacial snow cover having become too thin. As Tignes, in France, also closed that leaves just five glacier ski centres open in the Alps for the remainder of the month, in the hope that all make it.
Molltal, in theory, has arguably the third-longest ski season in the world, running from about 11 months from late May through to the following early May, just a little short of year-round Hintertux and Zermatt. But in successive summer/autumns for three-or-four years now it has closed due to thin snow-cover for 6-8 weeks in August and September.
Ironically, the weekend and past few days have seen a slowing of the fast thaw on glaciers in the Alps and even a little fresh snow reported for some.
Like Molltal, the two ski areas in Scandinavia that would normally be open in August, Fonna and Galdhopiggen, remain closed due to thawed snow cover on their glaciers. For Fonna that’s probably it for 2021. But Galdhopiggen hopes to re-open in late September if conditions are good by then; its season usually runs into October.
ALPS
ALPS REPORT| There was fresh August snow reported about 3,000m up in the Alps on Monday, August 2nd at the currently closed Stubai glacier near Innsbruck in Austria. Although the resort was keen to stress it’s only about six weeks now until it plans to open for its 2021-22 ski season in mid-September.
Other Alpine glaciers have been reporting similar small snowfalls through the past week and several resorts were closed for summer activities like hiking and mountain biking due to what was bad weather for non-snow-lovers at lower elevations: rain, wind and fog. Of the still open summer ski areas, Saas-Fee has also had some closed days this past week.
Two more glacier ski areas have closed in the past week, Tignes in France as expected at the end of its ever-diminishing summer ski season, now down to about 10 weeks, and the Molltal glacier, in Austria, which by contrast was due to be staying open. It made its closure announcement at short notice last week but as it has closed in August-September in recent years we perhaps shouldn’t be too surprised.
So, there are five glacier ski areas open for August in the Alps, and indeed with Scandinavia’s glaciers also closed early, that’s the total for all of Europe. It’s one each for Austria, France and Italy. Two for Switzerland thanks to Saas-Fee (0/270cm / 0/108″) opening last month for its 2021-22 season, joining the year-round glacier slopes of Zermatt (0/150cm / 0/60”), Europe’s highest slopes, with access shared by Cervinia over the Italian border.
Italy’s Passo Stelvio (0/175cm / 0/70”) remains open along with the year-round slopes of Hintertux (0/145cm / 0/58”) and for France, Les 2 Alpes (0/75cm / 0/30”) is the last area still open following Tignes closure, aiming to make it through to the end of August if the snow lasts.
On that issue, the colder weather and the fresh snow up high over the past week seems to have stalled the previous rapid decline in snow cover through June and July, but the next month or so will show whether we start to see more fresh snow falling than thawing away sooner or later, as we build-up to the start of the autumn glacier ski season in September.
Hintertux currently reports the most terrain open in the Alps, Europe and indeed the Northern Hemisphere with 20km of runs open, 5km more than Zermatt/Cervinia.
ALPS FORECAST| There’s more snowfall expected at altitude on glaciers over the coming weeks with some rainy weather in the valleys potentially snow up high. Temperatures are cooling a little up at 3,000m too, with most areas forecast to see temperatures hovering around freezing point, only climbing a few degrees above in the daytime and dropping below at night. Between the periods of precipitation, it will be largely sunny and temperatures down at resort level in the valley below closer to 20 above in the daytime.
NORTH AMERICA
NORTH AMERICA INTRO| Timberline ski area, in Oregon, remains the only lift-accessed ski area still open in North America. The Palmer Snowfield is used for team training between around 6am and 9am and then by the general public until around noon daily. Once again the region is seeing intense summer heat but so far the team, at the centre, have managed to keep everything open.
Skiers are also still reported to be making runs on high-altitude slopes in the Colorado Rockies, but after intense heat in western North America over the past few months, there’s not as much snow left as usual.
The High Voltage line above 13,000 feet (around 4,000m) is one of the longer lines people are still able to ski this time of year in Summit County. But those skiing it this summer report it is narrow in places with mud and rocks coming through. There is, however, about 200 metres (700 feet) of vertical still skiable for those prepared to make the hike.
Elsewhere in Colorado, a terrain park remains open for “campers” taking summer ski and board courses at the Woodward at Copper Mountain freestyle facility. The real snow park is created by piling the snow high at the end of spring so there’s enough left to maintain the park into August against a green background and the impact of the summer thaw.
The Denver Post has also been consoling Colorado residents battling the current heat by publishing the average dates when various locations in the state first see snow “in an average year.”
Breckenridge has the earliest average first snowfall day of September 30th, Wolf Creek, which has been first to open for several seasons, has October 3rd, Keystone, which operators Vail resorts, aims to open each October the 4th, then Aspen and Winter Park share October 5th.
The earliest ever reported dates of the first snowfall are much more imminent still. Breckenridge has seen snow on August 14th and Keystone on the 25th. Most other Colorado ski areas have had snow as early as the 2nd or 3rd of September.
NORTH AMERICA FORECAST| Unsurprisingly, another largely warm and sunny week awaits for Timberline, temperatures mostly 5-15 degrees above freezing. More changeable, cooler weather with some rain is expected towards the end of the week, but back to sunshine for the weekend.
SOUTHERN HEMISPHERE
AUSTRALIA REPORT| On the whole, it’s a brighter picture in Australia. Although there are strict travel restrictions in the state of Victoria ski areas remain open there, as do cities, at least at the time of writing. And the country is boasting the best snowfall in the world at present, with the deepest average base for the start of August since 2000.
Ski areas in the Australian state of Victoria have re-opened over the past few days after the state’s fifth coronavirus lockdown ended after 12 days.
There had been more frustration than usual for skiers and boarders as the 12 day period directly coincided with a major snowstorm which dumped more than 1.2 metres (four feet) of snow on the region’s ski slopes after a fairly snowless previous six weeks or so of the season.
The lockdowns, which continue in many Australian cities with Sydney’s now having military support, is to try to keep a tight hold on localised outbreaks of the Delta variant. In Victoria, skiers need to have a negative virus test and there are Australian media reports of police checking every skier for this proof. There are, unfortunately, also now reports of the first cases of the Delta variant being reported at a ski area.
But against this it has been snowing heavily again, with many areas reporting 10-20cm (4-8 inches) of fresh snow on Tuesday morning.
Mount Hotham (85/135cm / 36/54”) and Falls Creek (80/132cm) both now have more than 1.3 metres lying; very healthy figures for an Australian ski centre and both are virtually fully open for the first time with around 95% of trails skiable. Falls Creek has opened its Summit Quad Chair for the first time this season.
Ski areas in New South Wales have remained open although Sydney remains in lockdown and the border with Victoria closed. There have been reports of a Sydney family being fined for breaking lockdown to go skiing. However, Perisher (25/75cm / 10/30″) continues to post the most terrain open in the country and the world at present with over 60km (nearly 40 miles) of runs open for the first time. Thredbo (25/70cm / 10/28″) is in second place with 34km (nearly 30 miles) of trails open.
AUSTRALIA FORECAST| After a rather dry and sunny weekend following all the snowfall over the past fortnight, the snowfall has returned and is expected to continue midweek further building bases and improving on the already excellent conditions, giving a great base for the latter half of the season. Turning sunnier and drier again through the remainder of this week in most areas but cold too, highs just above freezing, low 5-10 degrees below.
NEW ZEALAND
NEW ZEALAND REPORT| Yet another week of very mixed conditions in New Zealand with, once again, some good fresh snowfalls and super bluebird days reported after the snowfall. But, equally, days of warm temperatures (too warm!) and rain that has caused temporary ski area closures.
One of the cases in point was Treble Cone Ski Area (70/80cm / 28/32”) which decided to close on Sunday morning after “another warm, wet night” meaning “we didn’t get the freeze/snow we needed” and sadly creating “genuine safety concerns around hazards opening up on the lower mountain,” instead. It stayed closed Monday but reopened Tuesday after 5-7cm (2-3″) of fresh snow and temperatures dropping to allow snowmaking to resume.
Others were closed due to blizzard conditions, Mt Lyford was closed at the start of the week but said it would be reopening from Wednesday 4th August with up to 40cm (16”) of fresh.
Mt Hutt (25/225cm / 10/90”) continues to post the most terrain open in the country with 36km of runs open, just a kilometre more than Coronet Peak (30/75cm / 12/30”).
The outbreaks of the Delta variant in Australia have also hit ski areas in New Zealand which had a lot of bookings from Aussie skiers who now can’t visit the country due to their lockdowns and a now two-month closure of the Trans-Tasman quarantine-free travel bubble that had opened between the two countries. One New Zealand ski area, Mt Hutt, reported 60% of its bookings for August, which had been at capacity, were from Australians, which have now all had to be cancelled.
NEW ZEALAND FORECAST| It’s a fairly clear and fairly cold week ahead forecast for the South Island after the warm spell, with temperatures staying close to freezing, or dropping below, with skies mostly clear. The weekend looks like the best bet for fresh snowfall. Similar temperatures but more snow forecast on the North Island where the country’s biggest area on Mt Ruapehu may get more than a foot (30cm) of much-needed snow over the next seven days.
ARGENTINA
ARGENTINA REPORT| There’s, unfortunately, no good news to report from Argentina after another dry, sunny week, the story of the past few months. La Hoya ski area has closed temporarily due to a lack of snow cover. Several other ski areas in the country, including one of the biggest and best known, Las Lenas (the continent’s biggest area by skiable terrain), are yet to open this season for the same reason. The continent’s biggest area by uplift, Cerro Catedral (20/80cm / 8/32”) near the famed ski town of Bariloche, has been fighting to open more terrain on the upper mountain all season but had to admit defeat at the weekend, closing this terrain again. It does report 20km (13 miles) of runs still skiable though, more than any other ski area in Argentina at present. Perhaps the country’s only resort with fairly good snow conditions is Cerro Castor (20/95cm / 8/38”), the world’s most southerly proper ski area down towards Tierra del Fuego in the south, which reports good snow cover on all runs and top-to-bottom skiing and boarding. That’s also the greatest snow depth any area in the country is claiming.
ARGENTINA FORECAST| It looks like yet another challenging week for Argentina’s ski areas with more sunshine forecast and many seeing temperatures rarely dipping below freezing and in contrast getting in to double digits above freezing in the afternoons, even high on the slopes. The one hope looks to be on Friday when most areas should see a major front move through potentially bringing the first healthy dump of snow in months, but that’s some way off yet and it won’t be everywhere. Cerro Castor, down south, has a much more promising forecast with cold weather and snow daily in their forecast, which could see it become the first in South America to pass the 1-metre snow depth mark this season, but it’s the exception.
CHILE
CHILE REPORT| The big news from Chile this week is, unfortunately, not good news. One of the country’s and indeed the world’s, best known and most loved resorts, Portillo, has decided it won’t open at all for a second winter in a row. The decision came through on Friday and is being put down to the Chilean government’s decision to postpone a planned reopening of international borders from (they’d hoped) this week, to (at least) mid-August. Portillo relies heavily on international guests so this delay to leave only a month or so of the season and with the uncertainty that it will happen in mid-August also a factor, was a delay too far. But for most other ski areas in Chile, the 2021 season continues into its second month. It’s been another fairly dry week, unfortunately, so bases remain thin and open terrain limited at each. But there has at least been a little more snow. Antillanca (5/55cm / 2/22″) reported 5cm (2″) of new snow to start August, good news after a lacklustre first half of winter for snowfall. Valle Nevado (35/50cm / 14/20″) has the most runs open at present, but it’s still only 18km (11 miles), less than half the potential terrain. Nevados de Chillan (40/68cm / 16/27″) has reported a little fresh snowfall too and finally opened more terrain beyond the beginner-only runs it was offering for much of July as a result. But, unfortunately, the expansion was short-lived and when the centre reported on Monday warm weather had melted the fresh snow and it was reverting to just beginner slopes being open.
CHILE FORECAST| There’s very little except sunshine in the forecast for the week ahead right across Chile. Resorts will see temperatures rising to 5-10 degrees above freezing in the daytime so might face challenges to maintain snow cover at some locations. Overnight lows will be a few degrees below freezing, making snowmaking just about possible at some locations that offer it.
SOUTHERN AFRICA
SOUTHERN AFRICA REPORT| Afriski (30/50cm / 12/20″), in Lesotho, remains open but August is the last month of the season here, with the resort aiming to stay open through to the final weekend of the month. Currently, the main run is complete, as is the lower part of the intermediate slope and the terrain park. South Africa’s Tiffindell ski area remains closed. Temperatures have been in the range of 2-6 degrees above freezing, with constant daytime sunshine.
SOUTHERN AFRICA FORECAST| There’s little change in the forecast for another week with sunny weather expected, temperatures remaining fairly cool.
