| |
THE SNOW
Winter 2008–09 will be remembered for the incredible quantity of snow which fell in the Alps. In Val d’Isère the snow conditions were superb from the beginning of the season on 29 November to the day the lifts closed on 3 May when, heart-breakingly for the 20 or so people still skiing, the latest dump of powder had hardly been skied out. It snowed on almost a quarter of the total days of the winter season, while sunshine accounted for nearly half the days. (The other 27% was cloudy, with just two days classed as ‘tempête’ by the Val d’Isère Tourist Office). All season, white-outs were followed by brilliant powder days, and a good pair of goggles was as good an investment as Factor 50+ suncream.
In all, 6 metres of snow fell in the village again last winter, and conditions were fantastic from the top of the mountain to the bottom. But while in some ski resorts this winter will be remembered as the best of the decade, yet in Val d’Isère these fantastic snow conditions are considered quite normal, partly because of the altitude – 1850m or 6000ft – and partly because the valley nestles against the peaks of the Italian border and benefits both from Atlantic depressions, like other French resorts, and the Mediterranean low pressures, which drop their snow on the Italian Alps.
A further 1.8 million cubic metres of artificial snow is made by Val d’Isère’s 300 snow cannons, enough to cover the M4 from London to Bristol a foot deep! Nowadays this snow is excellent to ski on, and the base it makes is still there in June. It is amazing that one of the snowiest places in the Alps also has more cannon snow than anywhere else. Only 30% of a river’s water can be used for snowmaking, so Val d’Isère benefits from having two healthy streams. Some resorts with lots of cannons produce surprisingly little snow.
More important than how much snow falls or is made is how well it lasts. Val d’Isère is tilted slightly northwards, protected from the warm southerly and easterly winds by a ring of high peaks. Its snow always lies early, and lasts a long time. Next season the lifts re-open on 28 November.
|
