Between 2-15 cm of snow came down in the northern Alps since Friday morning. But some regions got a bit more snow. Resorts east of Engelberg, west of the Arlberg, the resorts in the north of the Salzburgerlands, Styria and the Hohe Tauern got 20-30 cm, locally even 40 cm of fresh snow above 1800 meters. The sun is shing today (Sunday), but you can expect some more snowfall and rain in the northern Alps on Tuesday. There’s another storm in the forecast later this week, but this one should bring snow deep into the valleys. In this forecast:
- Nice weather in the Alps and fresh snow in the northern Alps
- Rain and snow on the north side of the main alpine ridge again from Tuesday
- A new storm coming in at the end of the week
Nice weather in the Alps and fresh snow in the northern Alps
Today is a great day in the Alps. The sun is high in the sky and is shining everywhere in the Alps. It’s what the Germans call ‘Kaiserwetter’. If you like fresh snow (and you probably do) the northern Alps are a pretty good place right now. Especially the most northern resorts north of the main alpine ridge got some fresh snow. They had about 2-30, locally even 40 cm of fresh snow and you can ride some powder east of Engelberg, west of the Arlberg and in the resorts in the north of Salzburg, Styria and the Hohe Tauern.
Rain and snow on the north side of the main alpine ridge again from Tuesday
A storm called Rolf will send a warm front to the north side of the Alps in the night from Monday to Tuesday. This front will bring rain and the snow line will rise. You can expect rain up to 1400-1600 meters (and temporarily even up to 1800 meters). Dry snow will come down above 1900 meters. It will be a mixture of wet and dry snow between 1400 and 1900 meters. It will be sunny, dry and mild in the west of the Alps (with the exception of the north of the French northern Alps) and in the southern Alps.
You can see the warm front (in red) on the map above. The cold front (blue) doesn’t manage to find its way to the Alps. Perhaps it will succeed on Wednesday, when cold air comes in and it will snow a bit deeper into the valleys in the night from Wednesday to Thursday. The weather remains a bit turbulent on the north side the Alps. Some rain (in the valleys), some sunshine and some snowfall. Wednesday will be a powder day above 2000 meters. The weather for the rest of the week is still not really certain.
A new storm coming in at the end of the week
There’s a new storm in the forecast on Thursday. The storm track is still not sure and will depend on the path of the jet stream. The maps are telling us right now that we can expect some snowfall in the southwest of the Alps in the night to Thursday. The amounts of snow that might come down are a bit disappointing, but the cold front tgat will kick in on Friday should bring us some serious amounts of snow deep into the valleys in the northwest and north of the Alps. But it’s possible that it won’t be cold for too long in the Alps. More about that later this week!
Discount on Mountain Academy
Want access to the most comprehensive online backcountry snow safety courses for skiers and snowboarders? Use code “ALTENMARKT1617”, valid until the end of February, to get access for only 9€ (Reg: 29€). Go to Mountain Academy and start now!
Stay stoked. Morris