Europe Weekly Roundup #256

(Updated 28 August 2024) A comprehensive review of snow conditions, weather, and updates for Europe’s winter sports destinations.

Afternoon Snow Flurries Bring Temporary Relief Above 3,000 Meters in the Alps

• Four glacier ski areas in the Alps are struggling with fast-thawing snowpacks due to warm temperatures, leading to varying daily conditions.
• Zermatt/Cervinia has kept its glacier slopes open consistently, with 11 km available, more than any other Alpine area.
• Slightly cooler nighttime temperatures and light afternoon snow flurries are offering brief relief from the summer heat at higher altitudes.

THE ALPS REPORT

There are four glacier ski areas in the Alps that are officially open, but all are battling the fast thawing of their snowpack in very warm temperatures. The result is that what’s open varies from day to day, with the Hintertux glacier (0/55cm, / 0/22”) not open at all over the past week and Saas-Fee (0/280cm / 0/112″) open on limited dates too. Italy’s Passo Stelvio (0/150cm / 0/60″) has been open for some days. Zermatt and Cervinia‘s glacier (0/150cm / 0/60″) is the only one to stay open through the past week, posting 11km (7 miles) of slopes open, the most of the four areas. That said, temperatures have dropped a little compared to the past month, with the mercury dropping below freezing again above about 3,000m (9,843 feet) altitudes in the small hours of the night. There have also been light snow flurries in the afternoons on high slopes, as microclimates have allowed the warmth to suck up moisture. However, below 3,000m, it’s been falling as light rain or sleet, not snow.

THE ALPS FORECAST

There’s not a huge amount of change in the forecast, with mostly sunny weather and the freezing point moving between 3,000 and 4,000m altitudes. So daytime highs at 3,000m will continue to reach the +5 to +10°C range. Further rain showers, snow above about 3,200-3,400m, are expected in the afternoons. It’s a month now until more Austrian glaciers are due to open and five weeks until the first runs are due to open in Finland, thanks to snow farming, with last year’s snow piles due to be uncovered and spread back out on the slopes to get winter 24-25 going.