Snow Report, June 30

There’s no doubting last week’s talking point when it comes to snow…Australia. After a frustrating and largely snowless start to the season, the resorts of the Snowy Mountains got right back on track thanks to two epic storms.

This was Perisher on June 24, after a metre of the white stuff had fallen.

And, pictured below, is Perisher on Saturday, in the grips of the second blizzard. Its snow report now claims a staggering 205cm of fresh snow in one week!

Pictured below is Thredo, also in the Snowy Mountains, earlier today.

And these were the fresh tracks on Perisher this morning.

It’s been a dramatic turnaround – although that’s all the snow they’ll be getting for now. In fact, temperatures are set to rise this week, so the time to ski the new snow is right now.

Who’s going to win the snowfall crown this week?

It’ll be a tough act to follow south-eastern Australia’s epic storm, but there’s been plenty of interesting weather around already this week – in the Alps as well as the southern hemisphere. Pictured below is the Hintertux glacier in the Austrian Tirol earlier this morning, in the wake of a cold snap which touched much of the Alps on Sunday.

And if you’re thinking, “So what? I can’t ski there!” then think again: because the summer ski season in the Alps is in full swing. Several glaciers in Austria are currently open for skiing, including the Stubai (until July 4), the Kitzsteinhorn (until July 20) and the Hintertux (all year), and there’s more high-altitude snow on offer in France, Switzerland and Italy too. In Tignes, for example, British ski school Snoworks is kicking off a four-week programme of race training and all-round skills clincs on the Grande Motte glacier today. Meanwhile, above Cervinia, Warren Smith’s summer programme got going on Saturday. We look forward to seeing the pictures!

Meanwhile in New Zealand, it looks as though a series of intense winter storms is about to pep up a rather lacklustre start to the winter season in the Southern Alps. Pictured below is the Queenstown resort of Coronet Peak earlier today.

As you can see, it was a little soggy there this afternoon, but all the signs are that there will now be a sharp drop in temperatures, and plenty more of the white stuff. The cold snap should last until Saturday.

Finally, many of the resorts of the Andes look set for fresh snow this week. It was here that winter got off to its strongest start, thanks to heavy snow in early June, but they could do with another dump now to keep the momentum going. According to the latest forecast, Mother Nature may oblige not once but twice before the weekend.

Maybe these two skiers in Valle Nevado saw the forecast this morning…

And finally, here’s a nice scrap of video from Portillo in Chile, showcasing the start of the season.

	France: you can currently ski on the glaciers above above Val d’Isere, Tignes and Les Deux Alpes. After cool weather at the weekend, temperatures are now rising – although there’s not much chance of settled weather before the weekend, and a growing risk of thunderstorms on Thursday and Friday. The freezing point will be at 2800m today and 3600m on Friday.
	Switzerland: as in the French Alps, Switzerland’s weather will be unsettled this week. On the Kleine Matterhorn above Zermatt temperatures won’t rise much above freezing all week, which means any showers are likely to fall as snow. On the slopes between Zermatt and Cervinia 17 pistes are open to skiers.
	Austria: see our main report. There’s fresh snow today on the glaciers! Currently, on the Kitzsteinhorn glacier near Kaprun, the cover is 230cm deep. On the Hintertux glacier south of Innsbruck, it’s up to 310cm deep.
	Italy: the Presena glacier above Passo Tonale is currently closed. However, you can currently access glacier skiing on the Swiss-Italian border from Cervinia.
	Andorra: Andorra’s ski resorts are now closed.
	Western USA: The Rocky Mountain ski season is officially over! Arapahoe Basin, Colorado, has finally closed for the season. But let’s not forget that in in late September they’ll be cranking up the snow cannons again if conditions are right. If you want to ski now, head to Timberline Lodge on Mount Hood in Oregon.
	Western Canada: the Horstman aboveWhistler is now open to skiers and boarders for the short summer season – which runs until July 27.