Snow report Stubai Valley, 01/05/2014

Snow condition

Somehow it hasn't been snowing since November. There is snow down to the valley and the valley run is also skiable. But it's hardly possible to ski off-piste without coming into contact with the ground - mostly rock on the glacier (see photos). Depending on the exposure and terrain, there is between 5-20 cm of fresh snow. Perhaps a little more in hollows and gullies. A few good runs were also possible there.

Snow quality

Very different. It's difficult to find completely unaffected snow. After it snowed yesterday, January 5, with little wind, the wind picked up again afterwards. You can see that too. You can see many signs of wind. There is also a light cap almost everywhere (see photos). However, this only has a moderate effect on driving. I didn't notice too many differences depending on the exposure and altitude in the morning. The mild temperatures and the sunlight changed this in the afternoon.

According to the LLB at 2200m level 3, you could also observe some snow slabs triggered by skiers in the steep terrain. However, the crack height was mostly only around 10cm. In the afternoon, a few small to medium-sized spontaneous loose snow avalanches could also be observed due to the warming. According to the LLB, the tendency is towards level 2, which was also my impression in the afternoon. However, caution is advised in gullies or hollows close to the crest.

Overall impression

Well, quite a lot going on, everything worthwhile tracked very quickly and really too little snow for January. Due to the already quite long powder withdrawal in the northern Alps, you can also look forward to days like this. If you want to remain halfway objective, I only like to award 2 stars.