© S. Birch
© S. Birch
© S. Birch
© S. Birch
© S. Birch
Les Arcs is open, the pistes are ready and it’s snowing
One weekend in and it is already a great start to the ski season
That could hardly have gone better. Expectations are always high at the beginning of the winter, but this year we have been genuinely blessed with a couple of days of near-perfect skiing conditions. It may only be the middle of December, but all signals are pointing towards another epic season on the pistes of Paradiski.
It is easy to feel optimistic following the weekend we have just experienced. Saturday gave us ideal conditions to warm up latent ski legs: great visibility, blue skies, groomed-but-grippy pistes and very little traffic. That night, the snow came. It dumped. From the top of the Aiguille Rouge to Bourg St Maurice in the valley, Sunday morning was visibly enhanced by at least 30cm of new snow across the mountain. This brought powder-day fun to everyone fortunate enough to be on the slopes. They may have been two very different days but both of them were absolutely stunning. Bodes well.
Saturday (opening day)
On the whole, the pistes on Saturday were firm, well-groomed with a decent, soft toplayer. Ultimately this provided excellent cruising conditions: not too fast and not too slow. Although the majority of runs were smooth and uncomplicated, moguls were beginning to form in some areas, particularly the steep section of Plagnettes (red) from the Col de la Chal and the bottom of Plan/Plan des Eaux (blues) leading to the Marmottes and Bois de l’Ours chairlifts. The climate has recently been great for snow-making, so there were some large mounds of compacted ‘artificial’ snow adjacent to many of the snow cannons. Many of these still remain unmoved, particularly around Arc 1600.
One good thing about opening weekend has been the Fondus du Ski, with pop-up melted-cheese-stations appearing at key points across the mountain. Snowboarding and free food; who could ask for more?
At the start of the season, lifts always open in tranches. It is therefore usual for some areas to be closed during the opening weekend, with new sectors becoming accessible throughout the first week. This year has been no different, with the small Clocheret and Grand Col chairlifts notable closures, as well as the Varet and Aiguille Rouge gondolas above Arc 2000. Although I have been eagerly anticipating a trip on the newly-updated Comborciere lift, I am still waiting for that particular pleasure. Generally, however, there was plenty open, the runs were in great condition and there was definitely no shortage of snow.
Saturday night
And then the snow came. Saturday night brought clouds, plunging temperatures and heavy snow to all the resorts. This covered the pistes, the villages and even the depths of the valley in a thick mantle of powder.
Sunday (day two)
Powder means fun. On this occasion, it also meant a slightly slow start to the day for some of the lifts, Arpette, Derby and Transarc in particular. Conditions were spectacularly super soft around 2000 metres although some of the snow had become claggy below 1800 metres (following early sleety weather). Oddly, conditions seemed to be worst in Arc 1800, but overall they were still pretty good. Visibility was somewhat sketchy, with patchy cloud and fog causing intermittent whiteouts at various altitudes.
The snow underfoot was largely excellent. High-level runs from Vagere (Arc 1800), Derby (Arc 1800/Vallandry) and in the Arc 2000 bowl were particularly powdery and perfect for snow-surfing. Above Peisey-Vallandry, the Moray and Myrtilles red runs are currently foreshortened, with only the top sections being open, but the nearby Aigle run is smooth and consistent for its entire length.
In terms of off-piste, it is getting there. The hazard level really depends on the area so, at this stage of the season, I would err on the side of caution. The snow depth increases from 40cm at 1600 metres to 150cm at 3226 metres, meaning that off-piste coverage is only sufficient to cover less rocky areas, especially lower down.
What’s a-coming
We are expecting some snow flurries throughout the week. It is likely that each day will see new sectors being opened up, providing access to fresh pistes and plenty of powder. Overall the early-season conditions are already excellent, so whether you are already here, or coming for Christmas, stay excited.
Read more from our Les Arcs reporter Sam on his blog.
