Snow report Sölden, Ötztal, 03/09/2017

Snow condition

Still not much snow, but after the heavy snowfalls of the last few days there is now snow everywhere. Some of the south-facing slopes were previously bare, but a base has already formed on the north-facing slopes and on the blown-in east-facing slopes, which is not only good for possible upcoming snowfalls, but will probably also save the touring season, at least over Easter, as the fresh snow is compact and heavy. Most of the ridges and crests are still almost completely blown away and not skiable.

Snow quality

The snow was quite heavy due to the high temperatures and strong winds, but it was still soft everywhere. In the last few days, a good 40cm has accumulated, but you don't sink in deeply when skiing, so there are no face shots. All in all, it's nice to ski with wide rocker skis, but not amazing.

Certainly very critical. Caution is required above all as avalanches can become extremely large and then run far. In areas where there is old snow and it is steep enough, you can see hundreds of meters long avalanche edges from avalanches that may have occurred yesterday. So, keep your distance from steep slopes, but the probability of triggering has apparently been surprisingly limited today. Of course, sooner or later everything that could be reached was skied in the vicinity of the ski area, even on very steep slopes. All in all, I only see level 4 in so far as avalanches can potentially take on really extreme proportions, but are not so easily triggered by the weight of a single skier.

Overall impression

Better than expected. Nice weather and not too much activity, so you could make fresh tracks in the flat off-piste terrain until midday.