Südstau

After some snow at the weekend, winter is visually recognizable again in the Northern Alps, although the base still leaves a lot to be desired. Some measuring stations are scratching the record minimum for the time of year. At least it's snowing in the south this week and maybe next week too!

Powder is like food. You want to enjoy it and preferably the best quality, of course. But that's where the parallels end, because you can never get enough of powder, whereas with food, if you don't indulge in decadence, as in ancient Rome, you will be full at some point.

A few days ago, there were reports on social media (not from us!) that a new, large südstau was coming. But as is the case with Ullr, Italian lows and precipitation forecasts beyond 72 hours, that was probably symbolic for social media. More hype than substance.

After around two weeks of fairly low temperatures, it will become milder again over the next few days. The cold air masses that have migrated to us from Arctic latitudes have moved eastwards and the high-altitude current is turning to westerly to south-westerly directions. After fresh snow in the north followed by considerable icy weather, the medium-term signs are now pointing to Föhn and südstau.

The winter has been contradictory so far: "We" in the north have been waiting for what feels like ages for a solid base, which is now finally on the horizon. In contrast, real amounts of snow have already fallen in the southern regions of the Alps. Time for a quick look behind the scenes at PowderGuide. How have the reach, usage and community developed since the start of the season? What factors are driving traffic and what can you, as our readers, look forward to in the coming months?

As announced in PowderAlert 3 and the SnowChase Xmas Special, it's been snowing - sometimes heavily - from the Maritime Alps to Piedmont since Sunday morning. While people are still sitting in the dry north of the Alps, winter is knocking on the door in the south.

The year is 2025 AD. The entire Alps have been conquered by drought. The whole Alps? No, a small Ullian village in the southwest of the Alps is resisting the invasion.

Every year, we and all the Christmas tourists are waiting in the wings, but the weather isn't really cooperating. The foggy areas in the foothills of the Alps are probably the most wintery at the moment. In the mountains, the sun is shining and temperatures are climbing into the double digits with the influence of föhn winds.

The title and PowderAlert say it all: it's raining cats and dogs on the southern side of the Alps and a lot of snow is falling at high altitudes. We briefly discuss what a heavy precipitation event is and look at the current event in detail. Finally, we briefly recap the winter and bring the WeatherBlog season to a conditional close.

The life of a cowboy is dusty, hard and full of hardships, just like the freeride season 24/25. But just before Ullr sends the season into retirement, he calls us back to the powder rodeo.

The cool, sunny spring weather will increasingly turn into summer temperatures with the onset of the Föhn wind. A late onset of winter is not in sight, but at least some precipitation is possible in the south after the long sunny spell.

Yay! another alert, but it's probably getting too warm. The last alert was perfect, but this one is just glop©* *the © is silent and is only important because PowderGuide owns all registered naming rights to this water-saturated fresh snow.