Sunshine forecast for half-term in Verbier
Conditions looking excellent for February holidays
Since the snow on Sunday night and Monday, the sun has continued to shine here in Verbier, making for perfect riding conditions both on and off-piste.
I spent much of my time on Monday and Tuesday skiing around Rock Garden, Attelas, Tortin and Col de Mouche, and above 2000m, found fantastic, knee-deep powder earlier in the day. As the day progressed and the sun beat down on the slopes, the snow did begin to become noticeably heavier, although still remained very soft and a pleasure to ski.
The Attelas couloirs such as No1 and Rock n Rolla were in excellent form on Monday, and while a lot of people headed for the trees in Bruson and Medran given the poor visibility, occasional gaps in clouds and weather provided me with unbelievable riding conditions and virtually untracked powder down these often steep and narrow runs. These freeride routes are not for the inexperienced nor the ill-equipped, but offer an amazing glimpse into steep, mountainous terrain while still being easily accessible from the lifts. With the crowds in Verbier increasing ever so slightly due to the beginning of the French and Swiss half term weeks, the mountain has been busier than usual, which has meant the easy-to-access off-piste around resort became tracked out quite quickly. That being said, much of the harder to reach areas are certainly still worth the hike or tour.
The pistes have also been in excellent condition, with the piste-bashing team doing an excellent job of grooming the runs each night. Due to the increased number of skiers on the piste, some of the high traffic runs have been becoming slightly bumpy towards the end of the day, but certainly nothing to compare to the itinerary runs such as Chassoure Tortin and Col des Gentiannes. My favourite runs in resort currently are all found on the Verbier side. The red Cabane run coming down from near the top of Mont Fort is currently a perfect mix of a challenging upper section with a few moguls and steeper parts, mellowing out into a wide motorway piste to cruise and carve all the way down into Le Chaux. Similarly, the entire run from the top of Les Attelas down to the Mayentzet lift is a real epic at the moment. Running for over 3km, there are loads of fun side hits if you want to take it slower and ski more jibby and playfully, or equally you can charge the length of it fast and aggressively, hitting the several rollers at speed for some decent airs onto an easy landing.
The more beginner oriented runs over in Savoleyres remain smooth and flat throughout the day, and are perfect for learner and intermediate skiers to practice carving or parallel skiing, as you’re unlikely to pick up too much speed quickly on these shallower gradient slopes. Further over towards the rest of the 4 Vallees, and conditions very much mirror those in Verbier, with consistently soft and grippy pistes, few icy patches, and very manageable bumps on the busier runs. The runs in the large bowl between Siviez and Thyon are often far less skied than most in the area, and therefore are usually very smooth and maintain their corduroy well into the afternoon.
The snowpack now sits at 123cm at resort level, 187cm at the 2200m mid-station, and 225cm at the top of the mountain. This bodes very well for this mid-season period, as well as making it likely that the snow should last late into the season and hopefully until end of April. The forecast for the next five days is for glorious sunshine all week long, and rising temperatures up to 4C mid-way up the mountain. The longer range forecasts are also saying that it’s going to be a very mild February, so it is possible that some of the snow might melt and we could see some early spring-like skiing conditions. Either way, there’s plenty of snow in resort at the moment, and warm sunny days just means soft and fun skiing conditions. See you on the slopes.
NB: Exploring beyond the ski resort boundaries is an amazing experience for anyone who's physically fit and has mastered the pistes well enough. There are, however, risks associated with venturing outside the safety of the marked/patrolled ski area, including awareness of your actions on those below you on the slopes. Mountain guides are professionally qualified and have extensive knowledge of the local terrain to provide you with the safest and most enjoyable possible experience in the mountains; as a visitor here we highly recommend you hiring one. Many ski schools also provide instruction in off-piste skiing, avalanche safety and mountaineering techniques. Make your time in the mountains unforgettable for the right reasons, ski safe!
Off-piste skiing and mountaineering are dangerous. The opinions expressed in these articles are very much time and condition-specific and the content is not intended in any way to be a substitute for hiring a mountain guide, undergoing professional mountaineering training and/or the individual's own backcountry decision making.
