Yes, we have loads of fantastic snow in Sainte Foy right now!
If the start to this season taught me one thing, it is that we live in the fragility of a very narrow range of temperature, and a few degrees either way can change everything. Before the season started, we had a fabulous dump of snow and everyone was super excited. Then the temperature rose by only a few degrees . . . and it rained. It rained a lot! If the temperature had been a few degrees lower we would have had over a metre of snow on one particular Friday afternoon. As it was, we sadly watched as our precious snow was washed away.
I would like to say a huge thank you to SFTLD, the lift company in Sainte Foy, for their amazing work in keeping the all the pistes open when many other resorts were having to close temporarily due to no snow on the pistes. ‘Chapeau!’ (hats off) to them, as we say around here.
Then it felt unseasonably warm for ten days, and everyone started talking about global warming. Some of the old boys regaled us with stories of years gone by when this had happened before. They also assured us that it was nothing new, and that the snow will come again soon. The old boys were correct of course. The temperature dropped and the snow came, as you can see in this photo taken of the small collection of Alpage chalets at Arpettaz.
The temperature dropped, dropping down to a very frosty -23 on the mountain. This is keeping the snow in fantastic condition, and here at Time to Ski we have been checking out the snow conditions for you. The piste snow is squeaky underneath your skis, telling you how cold and dry it is. It’s an absolute pleasure to ski on!
But we also went further afield to check the backcountry for you. Here, the off-piste sparkles in the sunshine like Christmas glitter, and the crisp mountain air nourishes your lungs with the purist oxygen on the planet. It makes you feel so alive to be on the mountains on days like these!
Steve Payne and myself skinned up to the top of La Fogliettaz and the snow up there was delightfully plentiful and powdery. The views are amazing up there too!
We skied a short pitch eastwards and then skinned up and round to Lac Blanc at 2,850m. The lake is frozen over during the winter, and since Steve is heavier than me, I was happy to let him go across first 🤣🤣. The lead picture shows Steve standing in the middle of Lac Blanc. He really does walk on water!
We love the backcountry! Especially when we find panoramic views of rolling untouched virgin snow like in the photo below.
It has now warmed up to -5 during the day and -12 at night, keeping the snow in fantastic condition.
I learned another valuable lesson on this trip. When the temperature drops to -20 and you get caught in a bit of wind, it feels extremely cold and you enter into frostbite territory. During the early morning, we skinned up via Le Monal. The sun hadn’t yet risen and there was a stretch where we caught the wind. My normal skinning gloves weren’t sufficient and even though my legs and body were warm enough, my blood was struggling to keep my hands warm.
It was the coldest I have ever felt in my fingers, and I was genuinely worried about frostbite. I know this sounds crazy, but I had to keep stopping and sticking my hands inside my ski pants to take the extreme cold off my fingers. Luckily, as we passed the little stone square denoting le croix de Saint Jacques, we came out of the ferocious wind tunnel and went back up to full speed. Soon after, we entered the Vallon du Clou, where the sun rose a bit more and bathed us in warmness.
The anecdote to this story came a couple of days later when we learned that last weekend, Bourg hospital was full of frostbite victims!
The low temperatures also produce super clear night skies in the mountains, and Sainte Foy in the early evening is picture postcard special.
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