J2Ski Snow Report - September 28th 2023
J2Ski Snow Report - September 28th 2023
Published : 28-Sep-2023 06:04
J2Ski Snow Report September 28th 2023
The sun rises on late-season snow at Mount Hutt, New Zealand.
Snow in New Zealand, and more early promise for Europe.
The Snow Headlines - September 28th
- Up to half a metre of late-season snowfall in New Zealand.
- Snowfall on high slopes in the Alps and Dolomites.
- Many southern hemisphere ski areas including Portillo end seasons this week.
- Solden opening for 23-24 season this weekend.
- More pre-season snowfall for high slopes across Western North America.
- Passo Stelvio re-opens for summer skiing, again.
- Tirol set to have as many centres open from Monday as rest of northern hem combined.
A quiet week for snow, worldwide, but see what's forecast next...
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World Overview
There's been plenty of snowfall on higher slopes in Europe and North America to mark the first week of autumn/fall by the astronomical measure of the seasons.
In Europe, the snowfall has mostly been above about 1500m altitude in the Alps and Dolomites but reached lower elevations further north in Scandinavia. More glacier ski areas have begun opening for their seasons in the Alps with Finland's first centres due to join them at the end of next week.
In the southern hemisphere, the start of springtime coincided with an unexpectedly generous snowfall in New Zealand, with some centres reporting half-a-metre of fresh snowfall. However, it was less good news for Australia where the last centre that had soldiered on, Perisher, closed early for the season on Monday.
The only countries where ski areas are still open for 2023, in the southern hemisphere are Argentina, Chile and New Zealand. Most of the centres that are still open in these three countries will close on October 1st, this coming Sunday, although some will continue to at least the middle of next month, conditions permitting.
Southern Hemisphere
New Zealand
It's been another weather roller coaster for New Zealand's ski areas with heavy rain for some as a major storm system moved in at the end of last week, but that turned into a serious springtime snow dump with several resorts posting half a metre of snowfall.
That snow came too late for Coronet Peak though which had already announced it was closing early, but for resorts like Mount Hutt brought great powder conditions for the weekend.
Things have been drier after the storms a week ago, but gale-force winds continue to plague some centres.
Temperatures continue to get below freezing overnight but climb to +6C to +8C in the afternoons.
More than half of the country's centres will be closed for 2023 by the end of the ski day on Sunday, but there'll also be more centres open later into October than anywhere else south of the equator.
Cardrona, Mt Hutt, and The Remarkables are aiming for the 15th and Whakapapa and Turoa on Mt Ruapehu on the North island hope to make it to the 22nd and 24th of next month respectively, making them last to close, as usual, in the southern hemisphere.
Argentina
A largely dry week for Argentina after the heavy snowfall of mid-September.
Most of the country's centres report good conditions but despite this, the majority expect to close at the end of Sunday. The only centre that has confirmed plans to stay open for a further fortnight is South America's largest, Catedral, near Bariloche, which continues to post the most terrain open in the world at present – about 60km of slopes/half its full terrain – and the snow still lying over a metre deep up high.
Chile
After the big snowfalls of recent weeks, it has been a mostly dry and sunny seven days for Chile's ski areas.
The season is in full wind-down now with the country's best-known centre Portillo, also posting the country's deepest snowpack at over 2 metres, announcing it will close at the end of Sunday, October 1st.
Several others have similar plans but at least three plan to continue later into October with Corralco open to the 8th and La Parva aiming to keep operating until the middle of the month.
For now, it should continue dry and although daytime temperatures are rising, overnight lows are still getting below freezing.
Europe
Alps
The Alps had a welcome dump of snow at the end of last week, bringing to an end a fortnight or so of warm, sunny weather, following which it's been mixed but temperatures are getting back below freezing overnight on glaciers.
The Pitztal glacier, in Tirol, started its season with fresh snow on Saturday, joining Hintertux to give Austria two open centres, equalling Switzerland where Saas Fee and Zermatt both remain open.
Solden is due to join them this weekend, and Kaunertal a week later.
In Italy, Passo Stelvio announced its re-opening on Sunday following around a 10 day closure, its second of its 2023 season, due to warm weather in the first half of this month.
Temperatures have been particularly dry and sunny on French glaciers since the weekend making it look like Tignes decision not to try to open for autumn glacier skiing any more was a good one.
Scandinavia
After the snowfall down to village level in Lapland, and snow crowning the fells of northern Norway and Sweden too, it has remained cold with snow flurries up high in Scandinavia's ski regions.
The Galdhopiggen glacier in Norway should be re-opening imminently for its final month of 2023, but otherwise, the two leading Finnish ski centres of Levi and Ruka are scheduled to open in just a week's time using snow stockpiled from last winter, stored undercover through the summer, then spread back out on the slopes over the past few weeks to create runs about 2km long each.
North America
More promising signs for ski centres in western Canada and the USA with plenty more areas posting images of snowfall on their higher slopes.
For some like Big Sky in Montana and The Palisades in California, this was the first time of this autumn/fall, for others like Sunshine in Alberta it is the third or fourth time already and the snow cover is looking more serious – the start of the season is 6 weeks away here.
Meanwhile several of the world's highest ski areas in Colorado, and candidates for being the first in North America to open for the 23-24 season - next month if conditions are good - began rolling out and testing snowmaking machines. Arapahoe Basin made some snow at the weekend but the issue for now is that although sub-zero overnight two miles up in the Rockies, it's still warm in the daytime so any snow made goes. But it is getting cooler.
There's nowhere open in North America yet though, other than New Jersey's Big Snow indoor centre.
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