Category: Start of ski season

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Pila has postponed its opening of the ski season to Saturday 6th December.

Pila has postponed its opening of the ski season to Saturday 6th December. Photo: Webcam Pila.it

Pila has postponed its opening of the ski season to Saturday 6th December. It was supposed to open this weekend, but they don’t have enough snow for it. Even though when you see at the webcams, it does not look so bad. Actually, it looks pretty good!

Pila, as it is mostly on grassy fields, do not need as much snow to open as, for example, Courmayeur does (as its terrain is more on high mountain which is rockier! You need snow to cover those rocks!). You can read a more detailed explanation of how much snow ski resorts need to open on this past post of mine.

The new ski map of Pila with its cable car replacing the old double Couis 1 on the top, and the skiweg connection from the top of Couis 1 to Couis 2. Courtesy: Pila Spa.
The new ski map of Pila with its cable car replacing the old double Couis 1 on the top, and the skiweg connection from the top of Couis 1 to Couis 2. Courtesy: Pila Spa.

The latest snowstorms have hit Pila, but not as much snow has fallen there, as it has on the Mont Blanc area and on the Cervino. Cervnia is opening more terrain this weekend, as well as Courmayeur.

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Cerro Catedral has opened its lifts: skiing for locals with masks and record snow levels.

Catedral Alta Patagonia, the resort of Bariloche, has opened yesterday. Photo: Diario La Nación. Cerro Catedral has opened: skiing for locals with masks and record snow levels.

Cerro Catedral has opened its lifts: skiing for locals with masks and record snow levels.

Cerro Catedral has opened this ski season 2020. Only residents with season pass can ski. This is a pilot scheme for ten days. Catedral is the first resort opening in the region amidst the Covid-19 pandemic. This is the first resort in South America opening!
Ski map Catedral Alta Patagonia. Cerro Catedral has opened: skiing for locals with masks and record snow levels.
Ski map Catedral Alta Patagonia. Cerro Catedral has opened: skiing for locals with masks and record snow levels.
Cerro Catedral, in San Carlos de Bariloche has opened its ski season 2020 only for locals with a season pass. The first day in the mountain in the year (Thursday 23 July) was fresh and sunny, with a depth of 2 m of snow in the summit.
Depending on this trial, the resort will do a bigger opening of its terrain in August and September.
skiing in Cerro Catedral. Archive photo. Cerro Catedral has opened: skiing for locals with masks and record snow levels.
skiing in Cerro Catedral. Archive photo. Cerro Catedral has opened: skiing for locals with masks and record snow levels.
Gustavo Gennuso, major of Bariloche told Télam:
“On one hand, the resort has an important role for Bariloche on jobs. But there are also vital needs as the relationship of mountaineers with the mountain. Those are the ones pushing on opening the mountain to help this activity”.
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A Day Trip to Valle Nevado from Santiago City

A Day Trip to Valle Nevado from Santiago City. Photo: Valle Nevado on a beautiful night.

A Day Trip to Valle Nevado from Santiago City

HURRAY!!!!! Finally the wait for winter has finished. Valle Nevado is OPEN!

Report by Chino Martinez – Professional Skier

Saturday 29th June, 2019

After weeks of waiting for our best part of the year  – YES! ‘WINTER” has arrived!

As a ski fanatic living during the winter in Santiago City, what I do all day is look up at the mountains and check how much snow accumulation there is on top!

From Santiago you can see the top of all the ski areas, and at this time of the season, we all get nervous about when we are going to start skiing and where, first!.

From the city to the ski areas you can drive up early morning in one hour or less, if you do so before hitting traffic jams. You will need a 4WD car with winter tyres and/or chains onboard.

I received a phone call from Pablo on Friday evening telling me to get ready as we were going to go up the next morning and were all set, 4WD truck, chains, cameras, drone, filmaker- we were ready to go!

6:45 am on the Saturday and we were ready to go.

Ready to depart from Santiago - a ski adventure awaits! Photo: Chino Martinez. A Day Trip to Valle Nevado from Santiago City.
Ready to depart from Santiago – a ski adventure awaits! Photo: Chino Martinez. A Day Trip to Valle Nevado from Santiago City.

We’ve started our trip to Valle Nevado with Pablo, the driver, Xavier, the film-maker, Roberta the TV show presenter and myself – the skier.

The road up was not in good shape as we had a storm the night before during all night and lots of rain came down the city. It was at 1.500 m of altitude that we started to see some snow.

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20 Inches of New Snow at Aspen Snowmass in the Last Seven Days

Aspen Mountain from the town of Aspen. Aspen Snowmass Releases First-Ever Progress Report on Methane-to-Electricity Plant

20 Inches of New Snow have fallen at Aspen Snowmass in the Last Seven Days. Aspen Highlands Opens Early for the First Time Since 1992

Aspen Snowmass welcomed five inches of new snow in the last 24 hours with accumulations reaching up to 20 inches of snow in the last seven days.

Aspen Highlands opened early today for the first time since 1992 with five inches of new snow on a 40-inch base.

1st December on Aspen Mountain. Photo: Aspen Snowmass. 20 Inches of New Snow at Aspen Snowmass in the Last Seven Days.
1st December on Aspen Mountain. Photo: Aspen Snowmass. 20 Inches of New Snow at Aspen Snowmass in the Last Seven Days.

Aspen Mountain received five inches of snow and Snowmass received four inches in the last 24 hours and the forecast is predicting more snowfall by end of day.

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Season Opening’s at the different ski resorts of Sudtirol and Christmas Markets

These unique Dolomite vistas encompass the extensive Alta Badia ski area, with magnificent views of the Sasso Lungo Peak and the Sella Mountain Range. Season Opening’s at the different ski resorts of Sudtirol and Christmas Markets. Photo: IDM Sudtirol.

Season Opening’s at the different ski resorts of Sudtirol and Christmas Markets

When you think of Sudtirol you think of the Dolomites in Northern Italy. The province of South Tyrol, or Sudtirol is bordering in the north with the Tirol in Austria and to the south with Trentino. The scenery is to die for, in reality, I have never seen more impressive and beautiful terrain in the world, the mountains are impressive and very rocky sculptured peaks, and at dawn or dusk, they turn into pink, thanks to the Enrosadira effect.

Cross-country skiing through the calm winter idyll with a view on Mount Sciliar/Schlern: the snow-capped wooden fences of the high plateau are the sole witness to the pastoral activities of summer. Season Opening’s at the different ski resorts of Sudtirol and Christmas Markets.
Cross-country skiing through the calm winter idyll with a view on Mount Sciliar/Schlern: the snow-capped wooden fences of the high plateau are the sole witness to the pastoral activities of summer. Season Opening’s at the different ski resorts of Sudtirol and Christmas Markets.

Enrosadira is the term given to the phenomenon whereas the peaks of the Dolomites turn into a pink/reddish colour, and then gradually turning into a violet. The reason of these changing colours is because the calcium carbonate and mangnesium carbonate of the dolomite, the mineral found in large quantities in the rocky walls of the Dolomites. Enrosadira is a Ladin term meaning ‘turning pink’. Ladin is an ancient language of the inhabitants of the Dolomites.

There are more than 30 ski areas located across all of South Tyrol. Most of these are part of the two larger ski associations.

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