Winter simply isn’t coming to an end. We found some great powder in the Alps last week and it won’t be a problem to find some fresh snow this week. There are still some resorts that have their lifts running and the base layer above 2300 meters is really good. An active depression will bring fresh snow to the Alps today and tomorrow and the temperature will drop thanks to the incoming cold air. The current will turn to the south from Wednesday and that will be the end of the low temperatures and fresh snow. Tuesday and Wednesday will be the days to ride. In this forecast:
- Great base in large parts of the high alpine
- More snowfall and dropping temperatures the next 36 hours
- Current from the south from Wednesday
- PowderAdvice for Tuesday and Wednesday
Great base in large parts of the high alpine
It is early May, but the conditions above 2300 meters are still exceptionally good in large parts of the Alps. There is a thick base layer and just a lot of powder on north slopes above 2600 meters.
I was in the Alps to test a new board the last couple of days. I’ve been working on a new board with some friends this winter and it was time for some testing. We already agreed on the shape for months, but we didn’t know yet which type of core would work best. After a couple of days of riding powder we finally made a decision. We’ll be launching the board nex season and the pre-sale will start in a couple of days. Leave your email address here if you want to receive the updates.
The conditions are still very good in the Alps and more snow will come down the next 36 hours.
More snowfall and dropping temperatures the next 36 hours
Friday was sunny, but there was some precipitation on Saturday and Sunday that brought 15-40 cm of fresh snow above 2400 meters. There’s more coming down today and tomorrow. It’s still pretty warm right now, but cold air will make its way to the north side of the Alps later today and the snow line will drop to 1500 meters in the night from Monday to Tuesday. Tuesday will start cold with a lot of instability in the air. This will result in snowfall, but the sun will come out from the west during the day. Wednesday will start with low temperatures and blue skies. The early bird gets the worm, because the temperature will rise during the day. You can still ride powder on north facing slopes till late in the afternoon on Wednesday.
Current from the south from Wednesday
The current will turn to the south from Wednesday. As a consequence, the cold air can no longer reach the Alps and the freezing level will rise due to the mild air coming from the south. You can expect some fresh snow south of the main alpine ridge, but it’s getting warmer and warmer, so don’t bother driving down there.
PowderAdvice for Tuesday and Wednesday
You can ride cold powder on Tuesday and Wednesday on the slopes of the glaciers on the north side of the main alpine ridge. There are still eight resorts that have their lifts running and you can ride powder in five of them:
- Engelberg Titlis (until May 28th)
- Kaunertaler Gletscher (until June 5th)
- Stubaier Gletscher (until June 18th)
- Kaprun Kitzsteinhorn (until July 23rd)
- Hintertuxer Gletscher (open year round)
If you have the time, I’d go! Simply because winter is probably over after this storm.
Stay stoked. Morris