Clear and sunny and snow remains good

Fog around Lake Geneva and on the plain, as well as at the foot of the mountains in Valais, sends people up to the peaks for sunshine and warmer weather.

Weather forecast

Crans-Montana, Cry d'Er, 8 January 2009

The weather is finally starting to warm up and, according to MeteoSwiss, it could get as high as 0C in western Switzerland by Tuesday – but at least a good dose of sunshine is expected throughout the weekend in the mountains, with haze on the plains. Monday to Wednesday: expect icy fog and frosty conditions up to 600-800 metres in the morning, clearing in the afternoon, on the plain.

Snow

Hardly any new snow has fallen throughout Switzerland and nearby France and Italy in the past week, but the cold weather has meant that ski pistes remain well covered. “Good cover but hard in places,” reports GenevaLunch sports writer Nick Bates from Crans-Montana, who reports that after Saturday 3 January the crowds thinned out, there were no lines and the skiing has been very good.

Jura report, from Shirley Curran

Perhaps it is the fog on the plain that is putting you off, perhaps you are at work – but can’t you sneak away during the lunch hour? It is fabulous on our summits up above a sea of fog. Yes, it is very, very cold, but hot wine is always on tap in the restaurants and snack bars. We have a good metre of firmly packed and well-groomed snow in all our resorts and the lifts are running for about twenty of us each day – no queues – it even becomes rather lonely up there in the glorious sunshine that greets us at about 1100 metres. The cold snap is due to continue for the next week at least with anywhere between minus two and minus fifteen, so you need to dress warmly. No new snow is expected and no cloud up there – but we don’t need those.

Mountain rescues continue

Air Glacier helicopter low over the slopes 8 January 2009

TSR has put together an interesting documentary film on how the mountain rescue teams work. You can watch these extremely busy crews as the TV station follows them, online. With Swiss ski resorts reporting the best season in years, the rescue helicopters have continued to fill the skies.

Special offers and online tickets

We reported last week that some of the online ticket systems for the resorts did not appear to work as smoothly as expected, but initial problems or slowness now appear to have been fixed, and buying online does mean you don’t have to queue as much when you get to the mountain.

Resorts are also coming up with more flexible offers, such as this week’s list from Crans-Montana of bargain days, when traffic on the slopes is low and prices drop according. Check out the calendar of dates for tickets from as low as CHF9 to 39 – a very good discount if you’re free those days!

Walk, don’t ski

A reminder that you can enjoy the mountains without being a skier or spending money on equipment and day skilift passes: most resorts have walking trails.

A word of caution, however: take along poles, as the snow is packed and can be slippery and in places the paths are steep. The scenery and air make it worthwhile. If you have older people with you, try a flat hike, such as the golf course at Crans-Montana or go a bit lower and walk in the vineyards.

You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.