Snow report Sarntal Valley, 01/31/2014

Snow condition

Even in the valley (approx. 1100 m above sea level) you can talk about one meter of snow. On the mountain it's getting more and more. Whether on the south or north side. Ground contact is virtually impossible. Huts are slowly but surely disappearing in the snow and even in the dense forest, fallen trees are covered in a thick layer of snow.

Snow quality

When we arrive at the valley station, it is still plus degrees (approx. 2°C) and it is raining. The snow is correspondingly wet and heavy. Little changes during the ride up the mountain either. Even at around 1600 m it is still raining. Only at 2000 mh does it snow. But still very wet. The snow is deep and actually really difficult to ride. From approx. 1600 mh it's almost impossible to ride (hopping around to relieve the depth is possible, but who wants to ride in 1 m deep snow like that). Only the first 200 m from the summit are fun.

According to LLB 4, the amount of new snow is critical in any case, even if the snow fell at relatively high temperatures. The moisture penetration is also not having a positive effect on the stability of the snow cover. And due to the sometimes very heavy snowfall, visibility is very poor, which makes it very difficult to assess individual slopes. We only skied moderately steep treeruns and even here we could hear booming noises on the crests (even if this was probably due to air escaping from cavities in the mountain pines). All in all, quite critical. Tours are virtually impossible. Runs in wide open terrain too.

Overall impression

The difference between the snow depths on an air line of barely 20km is impressive. Even if the snow is only moderately enjoyable on the descent, as a northern Alpine skier plagued by a lack of snow and a hairdryer, you have to award 3 stars here.