26 Nov Where to find the best snow in the Alps.

Where to find the best snow in the Alps – A snow discussion with the snow doctor.

Jen Murphy from the Robb Report recently asked us where to find the best snow in the Alps. The question stemmed from a recent study stating that since 1970 the ski season has shortened 38 days on average. Apparently the season now starts 12 days later and ends 26 days sooner. Our thoughts? Do the maths and you will see that this is ridiculous. It claims that the season is basically one month shorter, which we know from the opening and closing of our ski stations here, in our area of the Alps, that this is completely false.

Facing facts

Let’s get to the science of the question as Robert, our snow doctor, so correctly answered. Where do we find the best snow in the Alps? Firstly, let’s look at where the measurements for this study come from. As he is constantly taking measurements himself, he immediately recognised that the measurements were not coming from ski stations at high altitude. He also surmised that the people writing this study were not out in the field. The numbers were most likely coming from articles on the internet, or possibly measures taken at low altitude. This study is completely irrelevant to our high alpine area.

So how do we know where to find the best snow in the Alps?

Well, it is complicated. It is hard to make generalisations as there are always exceptions. Take 1964 for instance, here on the borders of Switzerland, Italy and France. During that year all of the mountainous border crossings stayed open. They are normally closed due to heavy snow fall. Many people in this region remember that year and often talk about it.

Then, Robert mentions that at low altitudes there is less and less snow, but then again this is not guaranteed. In December 2017 we had one meter of snow in our capital of Valais Sion which is 515 meters above sea level. So, it is difficult to generalise. The averages do not represent the reality, especially at altitude. For example, for the whole of last winter the snow depth was better than the previous 15 years. Therefore, it is not possible to say that the seasons are getting shorter or that we are getting less snow at altitude.

Want snow? Head high.

What we can say for sure is that the high-altitude regions are not getting less snow than they were in the 60s. In fact, perhaps we are getting more snow at altitude than ever before. We sometimes notice a shift with less snow in December and more snow in April, but then again last year that was not the case in Zermatt which had amazing snow cover from the middle of December.

We can also say for sure that the lower altitudes are getting less snow than in the 60s, but it is very irregular. This means that sometimes the areas at lower levels will get big dumps and more than we saw in the 60s.

In summary, nothing is regular or predictable. Sometimes we need to embrace the grey and understand that the only thing that is sure is unpredictability. What does this mean for us? It means that we need to be prepared to be flexible. If we do this we will always find the best snow in the Alps.

Warm regards from the mountains,

Danielle