Snow storms hit les 3 Vallees : 5th January 2012
High winds and heavy snow falls

We’re currently experiencing what the French call ‘grand mauvais temps’ or big, bad weather. Snow has fallen all day long; the visibility is dreadful and the wind is howling at altitude. The wind is bad news in that it closes the top lifts, but this snow is thoroughly good news as far as skiers are concerned. What a brilliantly snowy start to the year we are having.

Whatever the weather, it’s well worth listening to the forecast on the local radio station, R’Méribel on 97.9 and 98.9FM. It is broadcast every half hour during the morning in both English and French. For example, it’s very useful to know whether the wind will strengthen and close the top lifts. If you get trapped by shut lifts in the wrong valley, the ride home by taxi can be vastly expensive.

It’s also a pleasure to listen to the language of the French forecast, which is so much more poetic and descriptive than the English version. The French forecast is full of amusing terms such as ‘aggravations’ and ‘perturbed weather’ and charming phrases like ‘seas of cloud’ and ‘clouds playing hide and seek with the sun’. Today we have ‘abundant’ snowfalls and a ‘tempest’ (which makes me think of Shakespeare).

Despite the fact that the snow is absolutely fabulous at the moment, I wasn’t tempted to go out skiing in the ‘tempete’ and there didn’t seem much point in going out with a camera just so you can see pictures of the insides of a cloud. Instead, here are some pictures I took earlier this week of new features in Méribel’s ski area.

First is our brand spanking new Saulire Express II gondola lift. This replaces the old, four-man Saulire gondola and whisks you to the top of the Saulire in comfortable six-man cabins. The cabins are spacious with panoramic windows. The seats face each other, which is more sociable than the old back-to-back seats, but not so good for surreptitious eavesdropping. Skis fit into special slots in the middle of the floor, but sadly no one thought to make them big enough for superfat skis.

The ride is much smoother and quieter than the old, rattly cabins and faster. When the Saulire Express I is completed next winter, the whole journey from Chaudanne to Saulire will take only 12 minutes, half the previous time.

Another advantage of the new lift is that it arrives at a different, higher point, next to the Télépherique from Courchevel. This gives Méribel users access to the challenging Courchevel couloirs and our own Méribel (Tournier) Couloir, and also to the swanky Panoramic restaurant. The new position also makes it easier for foot-users to join the Courchevel lifts. All in all, this is a big improvement to the old Saulire lift.

The second improvement is the extended Blanchot beginners’ run. The new part of this green run starts at the mid-station of the Saulire Express lift and joins the existing beginner run.  If you are skiing with small children in Méribel, make sure you take them down the lower part of this run, along a little detour called the Moon Wild. Along it are hidden full-sized models of woodland animals that kids enjoy spotting and there is also a quiz about the animals’ habits.

There are various other new lifts and pistes in the 3 Valleys this winter and I promise to report back on these when the weather improves. Until then, I shall light a fire, curl up with a pot of tea and watch the snowflakes whirl down. Grand mauvais temps is best enjoyed from indoors, in my opinion.

• Latest Conditions
  Brilliant snow: dreadful weather!
• Depth of snow on lower slopes
  100cm
• Altitude of last snowfall
  1450m
• Date of last snowfall
  5 January 2012
• Depth of last snowfall
  20cm
• Total number of pistes
  85
• Highest temperature
  1C
• Altitude of lower slopes
  1450m
• Depth of snow on upper slopes
  215cm
• Avalanche risk
  4
• Altitude of upper slopes
  2952m
• Altitude of highest temperature
  1450m
• Number of pistes open
  82

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