Well it’s cooled down here in Verbier this week but the slopes are still busy with school holidays. Next week is the final week of holidays for Europe and won’t be as busy as it has been. We had fresh snow on Sunday which was very welcome and certainly helped improve conditions. However natural snow coverage below around 1400 metres is a little below average for the time of the season as there is now no natural base. Having said that, above 2000 metres the natural depths of snow are normal and above 2500 metres they are higher than normal. The pisteurs continue to do an incredible job of snow management to maximise the pistes for us all.
Snow in the forecast
There is a cold front coming through with precipitation, so we have light snow forecast for tonight with a freezing level down to around 1700 - 1900 metres. Snow showers continue through tomorrow as the temperatures drop a little. During the day on Saturday we will have light snow but in the evening and through the night into Sunday it looks like we will get upwards of around 16- 20 cm of fresh new snow. The temperatures will drop to between -7°C and -12°C and the freezing level right down to between 200 metres and 450 metres.
So after the spring-like feel of the last couple of weeks in Verbier, it’s going to feel much more wintry again for the next few days with the colder temperatures and snowfall coming.
Avalanche risk
The current avalanche level is around 3 out of 5 in the northern Alps above about 2400 metres and is 2 out of 5 below that. With extra caution needed around the colder, shady and north, north west and north east facing slopes. Any significant snowfall could increase this risk especially on the north facing slopes on a weakening layer beneath.
If you are in the Chamonix area, this week's great video shows the famous Vallée Blanche, the longest off-piste ski run at 22km with over 2780 metres of vertical descent. A run that requires local guides to assess the constantly changing terrain.














































