Chucking it down in The Alps
Thursday September 2, 2010 - Email this article to a friend

Rain in many places, but some powder snow up on the glaciers. Just as the summer skiing resorts are closing, down comes the snow. It probably won't last long but a few people are making the most of it.

Up to 70cm of snow has fallen this week on some northern Alpine glaciers.

The Austrian resort of Solden is hoping to open a month earlier than planned, this weekend on September 4^th.

It follows the heavy snowfall there; it's currently got a 61cm base.

The Pitztal Glacier, which was due to be the first to open on September 15^th has not announced any plans to open early, but has received 50cm of fresh snow.

The Kitzsteinhorn Glacier above Kaprun, that closed unexpectedly in August due to the snow all but melting away, has still not re-opened.

However well over half a metre has fallen.

Looks good enough to re-open

It's the same at present on the Dachstein glacier, although it reports 30cm of new snow.

Looking good in Hintertux

All the snow should be helping out the former wife of Sir Paul McCartney, Heather Mills, who is out in Austria training in an attempt to represent Great Britain at the 2014 Winter Paralympics in Sochi, Russia.

See this related PlanetSKI story.

Over in France the two glacier resorts that have been open have now shut, despite the fresh snow.

Les 2 Alps remains closed for a while, but Tignes is set to re-open in a couple of weeks.

It Italy Val Senales reports 30cm of new snow, but Cervinia has only had a dusting of fresh snow, as has its Swiss neighbours Zermatt and Saas Fee.

Previously they had been the best places to ski in The Alps.

They have a 1.2m base, but report 'Spring like' conditions.

We all know what that means.

For a look at what the forecast is for the next 3 days see the map below. Blue is rain and the little green bits are snow!

Snow at altitude

However it is not all snow and rain. Here's a picture taken this week by a PlanetSKI reader in Lugano Switzerland.

Looks lovley!

Autumn in the Alps

We will bring you a full overview of conditions round the world later in the week in PlanetSKI Snow Report, complete with information, pictures and videos from our friends, contacts and reporters round the world.

Here's a cheeky picture of what it looks like down in Treble Cone, New Zealand, at the moment.

Eat your heart out Europe.