Latest Snow Conditions In Meribel - Early January

Hi everybody, Martin in Méribel here. It was only last weekend that I wrote a blog post about how to cope with skiing in poor snow conditions, click here for the link. And boy oh boy the snow conditions have changed massively since that last post! And as promised at the time, here is an update as to what has happened. It was still a busy week on the mountain with plenty of ski instructing taking place, even though the main festive period had finished, but more on that later. So, how are the snow conditions?

Ladies and Gents, we have gone from one extreme almost to the other. Just before the latest storms rolled in we had next to no natural snow on the ground below the altitude of 2,200 metres. As mentioned last week, it was possible to ski below this altitude due to the extraordinary efforts of the 3 Valleys ski area. However, the artificial snow cover had taken a pounding due to the number of skiers and snowboarders using these pistes. To be honest, I had never known conditions like it at this stage of the winter. What we needed was a ruddy great big dump to help recover.

Guess what? Oh my goodness, that was exactly what happened from last weekend onwards, a ruddy great big dump. Actually that isn't strictly true, it wasn't one dump that fixed things, we've had several waves of weather fronts come through. So not only have we had loads of snow falling; for most of last week it was much chillier as well. This was great news because the snow cannons were switched on straight away to get a good base back on the pistes.

No more need to ski on old skis, named Rock Hoppers, any more due to the ice and rocks. Those conditions seems like a long time ago now even though it has only changed in the last week. So how much has it snowed, for those of you who are number junkies? It is always hard to be accurate with these figures because there are so many variables including local micro-climates, but also high winds (of which there has been plenty). However, on average from mid-mountain upwards here in Méribel there has been between one metre, and one and a half metres of snow in the last week.

One slight fly in the ointment has been the temperatures the last couple of days or so, it has turned back to being mild again. The precipitation has remained which means that the top half of the mountain continues to be loaded with more snow. But the bottom half of the mountain has been on the receiving end of some moisture, ie rain !?! My ski instructor's dodgy-looking (but effective) big cape has made an appearance for a couple of days to help stay dry. So not a bundle of laughs skiing in the moisture, but on the positive side, this moisture will help the pistes. From tomorrow onwards the temps drop again, this means the moist snow will freeze nicely and create an awesome robust base on the piste.

It has been a fun week ski teaching here in Méribel, Courchevel and St.Martin de Belleville. I've taught a Russian (who was here celebrating the Orthodox Christmas on Jan 6th) for a few days, plus a couple of beginners from Manchester. I also taught two young sisters who both enjoyed the fresh snow. And finally the second half of the week I taught various members of a large family over separate periods who were different standards and enjoyed different types of skiing. We all had to be mindful of the avalanche risk, and valley link closures due to weather conditions, however it has been a very fun week to be on the mountain.

The other good news about the weather is that we are due another frothing great big dump of snow (with the snow-rain limit well below resort level) from tomorrow through until early Wednesday morning. And then again yet another big snowfall towards the end of the week with the temps falling dramatically even further. The figures being bandied about again for fresh snow in the next few days, another one to one and a half metres plus is due. How good is that? On a slightly serious note though, the avalanche risk is very high at the moment, and is predicted to reach the maximum of 5/5 at times over the coming days.

So, what a transformation we have had, and will continue to have. This is one very happy ski instructor right now, compared to just over a week ago when he was trying to disguise the fact that his new name was Grumpy McGrumps. Next up, a short report on a brand new mountain restaurant that has just opened here in Méribel. For those who know me, mountain restaurants are an important part of skiing sometimes. Stay tuned. If you enjoyed this article, you might like another from earlier this winter, click here for the link. Feel free to share away on Facebook, Twitter, Google+ and LinkedIn by using the social media icons. Or please leave a comment below. Have a great week everyone. Right, I'd better go and find my snorkel to help deal with all the snow that is due. Martin (Happy McSmuggs).