Snow report Swanetien, 01/31/2024

Snow condition

The snow conditions are excellent for the end of January, even if I can't compare them to what it's usually like here. From 1500m in Mestia you can start tours without ground contact. There are sharks in the Tetnuldi ski area, but only on broken ridges and rocks. The hollows and especially the northern sides are abundantly filled with snow. In Ushguli at about 2500m on the north side 32 degrees we did a big sliding block test. No weak layer. A compact snow cover right down to the bottom. We couldn't dig any deeper than 3m, but the probe went another 2m deeper before it touched the ground. In short: there is enough snow. Only ice flanks are less covered due to the season.

Snow quality

Pretty fluffy stuff. Over a week of fresh snow alternating with sunshine and double-digit minus temperatures. Really wintry and hard track work but it works for the quantities as the snow is incredibly light.

Slippery snow, in all exposures from approx. 32 degrees, arrives on almost all slopes and at all altitudes. Despite temperatures consistently in the double-digit minus range. Even on the north side and at night, these things are coming down with massive ripping edges of over 4 meters. All affected slopes have grassy ground, as soon as you go onto the glacier moraines or have scree and rocks as ground above approx. 3000m, you can avoid the problem. Avoid terrain traps and ravines with large slopes above you as far as possible. In Tetnuldi the main danger is sharks. The snow conditions in the FWT face are already very good, but some landings are still sharky as large rocks are now turning into small sharks. My skis had to suffer a bit. Avoid the back, it's more than good in the hollows! In about 8 days on site I haven't seen a snow slab and only one cornice break with no consequences. The main wind direction in Ushguli was south-west with old cornices and few new drifts. All in all, apart from the many sliding snow avalanches, very safe conditions at the moment.

Overall impression

Top snow conditions, super powder and a great crew. What more could you wish for? Georgia can look forward to a top season if it stays this cold and wintry. I'm looking forward to following the FWT in Tetnuldi. If you need detailed and up-to-date photos of the ice flanks and couloirs around Shchara, please send a PN to info@adrian-sauter.de