Traffic and weather forecasts, history of skiing show, horses on ice, motorcycle fair and other good train deals, horses on snow, giant greeting card

Plenty of snow in the Jura! February 2010 (photo: Shirley Curran)

Geneva, Switzerland (GenevaLunch) – This weekend it is Geneva residents who head for the ski slopes en masse, with school holidays the week of 22 February. Expect crowds in all Swiss and nearby French resorts.

History of skiing and extraordinary collection of old skis – don’t miss it!

Conthey history of ski exhibit, Coop centre

Ski collection of Laurent Donze, more than 2,000 skis showing centuries of history

The newly redone large Coop in Conthey, two minutes off the autoroute in the heart of a large shopping complex, is home to an extraordinary collection of skis until 28 February. This is a must-see exhibit which recounts the history of skiing from ancient times, put together by Laurent Donzé, who has been president of the Swiss Cross Country Ski Federation. He told GenevaLunch he began collecting skis more than 30 years ago and he now has over 2,000 skis in his collection.

If you think downhill skiing began with the arrival in Switzerland of the British, you might find history shows it is a bit more complicated than that. The exhibit is well documented and illustrated, but the skis themselves offer a reminder of how the need for skis and their designs have changed.

Weather forecast

Rain mixed with snow Friday afternoon on the plain. Snow down to 700 metres in Alpine and Jura areas. Saturday: gradually clearing on the plain, with highs of 4-5C,. Snow Saturday in the Alps, with highs of 9C in the Alps due to warming foehn winds. Winds moderate on western edge of the Alps.

Traffic forecast

Geneva begins its vacation, but so do 10 other cantons Friday 19 February, so TCS warns that traffic will build during the afternoon. The area around Lausanne and heading towards Valais, around the Glion tunnel, are expected to be the worst-hit areas. List of expected heavy traffic areas and time, TCS. For current traffic advisories: TCS in French and the federal truck site in English. Reminder for drivers leaving Geneva: expect delays around Nyon and Gland due to roadworks that continue until 25 February.

Alpine resorts

World's possibly largest greeting card wishes Swiss athletes well, Le Creuson dam in Valais

Crans-Montana tried a shortlived experiement this past week, closing the streets to car traffic from 15:30-20:00, but shopkeepers were angry because they were not fully consulted, and the project was dropped midweek.

Verbier report, from Jessica Evans

Moderate snowfall Friday afternoon should give improved ski conditions this weekend. At 1,500 metres, Saturday temperatures will see a max of -5C, with lows of -19C on Saturday night. At 2,415m on the slopes, expect a high of -12C. Sunday weather should be slightly warmer. Conditions have been slightly icy in parts this week and runs have been busy due to an influx of visitors thanks to various European school holidays. Next week should be quieter and a better time to enjoy some fresh powder and avoid the crowds. Be sure to rug up to avoid icy winds on chairlifts. Light snowfall on Tuesday morning and clear skies should make Wednesday an ideal day to enjoy some perfect ski conditions.

Despite the cold, the Mardi Gras festival Tuesday 16 February saw thousands of people in fancy dress costumes around town with live bands, street performances and free hot wine served from steaming hot vats in the centre of town. Most bars and clubs were licensed until much later than normal with restaurant and bar Le Rouge offering a 24 hour DJ set until the early hours of Wednesday for those party-goers with extra stamina.

Quatre Vallées: a giant good luck in winter sports card, possibly the world’s largest greeting card, with 3,645 good wishes signed, has been put up across the Lac de Creuson dam, at 2,000 metres. It measures 43×64 metres and AlpIQ, the electricity company that has sponsored it, has registered it for the Guinness Book of World Records. Shopping bags that are a copy of the huge banner are sold on www.fanpower.ch, with buyers entered in a contest for day ski passes and a trip to the World Cup ski finals in Garmisch-Partenkirchen, Austria.

Further afield, canton Graubuenden is having, as it almost always does, a magnificent winter. The final of three glamorous White Turf horse races on the frozen lake in the centre of town takes place Sunday 21 February.

Jura report, by Shirley Curran

Les Monts, Jura, February 2010

We were skiing in the coldest weather I have known in the Jura mountains a week ago: it was -15C with the bise blowing at the high points of our resorts and, as usual, the warm-up in our refuges was very welcome. However, today, temperatures briefly rose above zero and the thermometer looks likely to stay around
zero for the weekend and the start of next week, with some slight snowfalls. We have masses of the stuff and all installations are running since the French half-
term holidays are giving us peak crowds.

To escape the queues, we took an interesting trip to Menthières, the little resort at the west end of the Jura mountains. It is on the Monts Jura ticket but offers much lower-priced day passes – €13.50 for adults and €11 for under 16s and over 64s. Access is via Bellegarde or via the Valserine (down beyond Lélex). There is a variety of runs, some of them fairly challenging and some of them lovely wide blue motorway pistes. The little resort is served by a four-place chairlift and four poma lifts (one of them difficult) and rises to 1535 metres.

There is a splendid variety of cross country ski trails, ranging from 4 km to 15 km and a 6.5 km snowshoe piste with a guide available.

Menthières also has a restaurant and a very welcoming snack bar, A la Bonne Gaufre. It is an hour’s ride from Geneva, but it is certainly a fine resort for young families as there is a vast beginner area.

Motorcycle, hunting and fishing fairs

This is a busy weekend in Switzerland and not all the activity is skiing: Zurich hosts a large motorcycle fair, with the CFF rail company offering special deals to attend. Hunting, shooting and fishing fans will find a fair with special rail deals, in Bern 18-21 February.

If you yearn for Spring, keep an eye on Max

Max the stork is one of Switzerland’s most reliable harbingers of Spring. She has been tracked for more than 11 years and is the longest-tracked bird of her kind. She headed south in September and has spent the winter south of Madrid. Two weeks ago she began her long journey back to the summer home on the Swiss-German border where she has her young. Wednesday 17 February she flew from Saulce-sur-Rhône in the French Drôme to Roussillon in Isere and she is expected to cross into Switzerland today, Friday. Depending on weather, however, she could decide to head further north and cross from the French Jura into Germany, skipping Switzerland. Whatever route she takes, she is returning for Spring. Background: GenevaLunch

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