40cm overnight, and that's just the beginning!

Schneelage

Chamonix has also been hit by the recent snowfall in the Alps with over 40cms falling overnight on top of a deepening base. Powder skiing in the tree line at Les Grands Montets was the order of the day today. Poor visibility, high avalanche danger and strong winds stopped any further exploration. Tree line snow conditions are generally very good with way more than the forecasted 40cms accumulating in places. There's plenty of fun to be had nipping through the trees around the Tabe chair lift and we found bottomless powder in the Phillipe couloir down from Lognan to the Pierre A Ric piste. More snow forecast for tomorrow (Sunday) with around 40-60cms due to fall during the day. Let's see what lifts open and stay close to the tree line for now.

Schneequalität

Incredibly light and fluffy in wind protected areas like the tree line at Les Grands Montets and surrounding couloirs (All below 2200m) Above the tree line you can notice the wind effect and it feels a little heavier but still really good. Watch out for windslab particularly in bigger faces that have been exposed to the northerly wind. But in summary = snow quality is as good as I've seen so far this winter!

The avalanche risk is significant with the local authorities putting out a 4/5 rating this morning. Play safe in the trees for now and avoid bigger faces above the tree line especially where wind loading has occurred. The incoming snow storm for Sunday will come with strong winds and it looks like a familiar pattern for the beginning of the week too. I won't be rushing to ski anything big until everything settles down. Tree skiing for the win these next few days.

Gesamteindruck

In summary the conditions are epic if you stick to the trees and don't go too far from the lifts. With a 4/5 avalanche rating there's no need to push it for now.
Enjoy the powder in the trees and look for couloirs that should now be filled in nicely.
Grands Montets, Brevent, Flegere, Le Tour and Les Houches are all open for the season, although not all lifts are running.