Val Thorens Snow Report: 17th March 2015

Lots of lifts higher up have been closed today (Tuesday 17th March) and the same occurred at the weekend. It can seem quite strange if you are staying in lower resorts such as St Martin and Les Menuires as it really does not seem windy. Just one lift up however and you notice a huge difference. I know that certainly the top section of La Masse was closed along with higher areas of Val Thorens. The pistes are noticeably much quieter due to the restricted ski area. Whilst there was more snow forecast again today and visibly you could see there were lingering clouds higher up I’m not 100% there’s actually any white stuff falling up there but you never know!

Conditions at the moment are definitely changeable. I reported a few weeks ago that the days of icy pistes were behind us, unfortunately I think I have to take that back, damn it. Today just on one piste I had; icy sections, slushy sections and large areas of snow canon-ness (sorry not sure of the correct terminology). Anyway it certainly keeps you on your toes otherwise you will end up on your nose! Certainly not the best conditions for any beginners, if you can learn in this, then I think you’ll find it much easier when the pistes are in tip top shape. There is certainly an increase in walkers and lots of people who seem to be opting for sledging instead of skiing!

The best event this week for anyone staying in the Three Valleys is if you head out of Belleville into Meribel where you can catch the World Cup Ski Finals. From Wednesday until Sunday the main events are taking place with men’s and women’s downhill, super G, slalom and giant slalom. The course runs down the Roc de Fer piste so you can see all the action at the finish in the centre of Meribel or at different sections of the course. I would definitely recommend heading over; there’s not many times you get to see the top skiers in the world up close showing you exactly how it’s done!

Temperatures are hovering around 10 degrees at the moment at 1400m and getting colder to one or two degrees in Val Thorens but not quite dipping into minus figures. This looks set to continue for the next week or so. We are just a couple of weeks away from the Easter holidays so it would be nice to have more neige on it’s way to make a nice finish to the season, you really never know in the mountains, anything is possible…

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Read more 3 Valleys Snow Reports from Meribel & Courchevel.