Lea Hartl

The Alps are on the edge of a Western European trough in a strong southerly current. While it snows on the southern slopes of the Alps, at least at high altitudes, the Föhn dominates in the north. How does the Föhn work again? And what's next for the weather?

After the passage of a warm front today, the current will turn to the southwest. While it will be very mild in the north with a föhn wind, precipitation will set in in the südstau. Further disturbances will follow at the weekend, bringing a lot of precipitation, especially in the south, but with a higher snow line than recently.

Today's GOTW is dedicated to a versatile piece of equipment that may be small, but achieves great things. A timeless classic that impresses with its low weight and pack size and is hardly damaged by years of storage in the backpack: the tea light.

There has been concern about the legendary ski resort in the Hautes-Alpes for some time: since the closure of the Chambon Tunnel last year, visitor numbers in La Grave have fallen sharply. In addition, the lease for the gondola and ski area expires in June 2017. Many locals fear for the future of their local mountain if large investors from the neighboring mega resorts get involved.

Both the Austrian avalanche warning services and the SLF have now made their full seasonal reports available to download online. In both countries, the warmer than average 2015/16 winter season only really began at the start of 2016. The number of fatal avalanche accidents was slightly below the long-term average. In Austria, 14 people lost their lives in avalanches last winter, compared to 20 in Switzerland.

The Alps are caught in a north-westerly current that repeatedly brings disturbances to the Alps. From today, Wednesday, until Friday, there will be considerable amounts of fresh snow, especially in the west. From the weekend onwards, the forecasts are still rather uncertain. It will be milder but remain wet with a chance of an Italian low. We'll leave the details to the oracle this time, who will be in touch later today.

To kick off the 2016/17 WeatherBlog season, we are addressing a topical question from PG user Peleiade: "What do I need to read? The polar vortex is weakening, extreme mildness in the Aleutian Islands and there is even a threat of a polar vortex split in early November? What does that mean in terms of fresh snow?"

Tecnica presents an interesting new boot for the freetouring segment for the 2016/17 season. The Zero G Guide Pro is a solid four-buckle boot that scores points with its surprisingly low weight and wide range of use. We tested the boot extensively in the southern hemisphere winter.

There was hardly a freeride qualifier podium last winter that Manuela Mandl, 28, wasn't on. With first places in Jasna, Nendaz, at the X-Override and in Roldal, among others, it's no surprise that she will be competing in the women's snowboard Freeride World Tour in 2017. We had a chat with Manu in the run-up to the event.

The Marc Achmüller shoe laboratory is a traditional business in its fourth generation. Master shoemaker Achmüller took over the business in Steinach am Brenner from his uncle and master Herbert Auer in 2011. Before that, grandfather Hermann and great-grandfather Josef Auer ran the business. Achmüller makes all kinds of custom-made shoes, but his main business is ski boots all year round, which he specialized in fitting during his apprenticeship. We talked to Marc Achmüller about his trade and learned a thing or two about ski boots.

Until a few years ago, the area around the Chilean volcano Puyehue was primarily known as a beautiful trekking region. Since Sherpa Cinema and Salomon Freeski TV were there and prominently featured the steep lines in the crater, the number of visitors has also increased during winter. Ever since the strange RedBull event Out of Hell, the Puyehue is no longer an insider tip - but it is still beautiful.

The Cerro Bayo ski resort near Villa La Angostura in Argentina's Lake District is a little overshadowed by the larger, better-known Cerro Catedral on the other side of the lake, but with nice touring and off-piste terrain it certainly doesn't have to hide. It is also much less busy.