Snow report Belledonne, 02/08/2017

Snow condition

A few weeks ago it still looked pretty sad here, but now Mrs. Holle has come back. In a snow profile we were able to determine a snow depth of 2.40 m. The average height is approx. 1.60 m. Today, another 15 cm of fresh snow fell, with around 60 cm spread over the last few days.

Snow quality

The snow line was at 900 m today. However, the snow is soaked up to around 1500 m. Powdery and loose in some places above that, influenced by the wind. It's really good around 2000 m. If visibility allows, you can make good turns.

I would describe today as a tense threesome. Due to the poor visibility, you had to keep a low profile, no matter how tempting the snow was. The first warning signal came on the first descent in the form of cracks right next to the slope at a low gradient. 20 cm of fresh snow slid off during a small block test with the slightest knock. There is another weak layer between the fresh snowfall since Saturday and the snow cover from the last snowfall in January at a depth of around 50 cm.

Overall impression

Snow at last. With a bit of restraint, we're bound to get something over the next few days. Let's keep our fingers crossed that the snow line stays low and the wind doesn't shatter everything.