 Poster: A snowHead
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Cervinia is closed today due to high winds and snow.
I've just been out and not a breath of wind so I'm assuming it's just the snow. It's dumping at the moment. Looks beautiful out there but just can't get to it.
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Obviously A snowHead isn't a real person
Obviously A snowHead isn't a real person
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I still have a hard time understanding the bonkers forecast for Zermatt that snow-forecast.com has been predicting in the past runs. Computers 
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Well, the person's real but it's just a made up name, see?
Well, the person's real but it's just a made up name, see?
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| Gyro wrote: |
Can someone give me the heads up on getting the bus to Valtanench please.
Would normally seem simple.... Get on the "ski bus" and go to where you want to go.
We got to the stop in Cervinia nice and early with about 20 people already there. Bus arrives a little late but not a problem. People get on the bus....then get off the bus....no skis allowed on the bus so they have to go in the storage space under the bus. The storage space under the bus was full of suitcases so no room for skis. Long storey short, bus leaves half full with no skiers allowed in the bus as no storage under the bus.
Is it just me or is this mental?
Am I missing something here or does it sound sensible that people in a ski resort who are skiing will have skis with them when travelling to another town on the same lift ticket? The weather in Cervinia has closed the links at the moment (not surprising and to be accepted) but being unable to get to another town on a "ski bus"
Because you have "skis" is in my mind as I have said a tad mental.
Please tell
Me what I am missing because there must be something.  |
Similar happened to us last January when on the first and last days Cervinia was closed and we had to use the bus. It is just a service bus and not a ski bus. In then end got a taxi back as bus driver got grumpy with skiers and closed the doors, leaving loads of skiers behind. Taxi's were doing great business that day.
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You need to Login to know who's really who.
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| axci wrote: |
| I still have a hard time understanding the bonkers forecast for Zermatt that snow-forecast.com has been predicting in the past runs. Computers |
I’ve been trying to work this out too, over 400cm of snow in 48 hours Sunday and Monday with more around it too
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Anyway, snowHeads is much more fun if you do.
Anyway, snowHeads is much more fun if you do.
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Hi guys - first time travelling to Zermatt on Sat for a week. Worried about getting there and not being able to ski/even get to resort/sitting in hotel looking at snow.
From those with experience - shall we just go for it… or (as my older and wiser brother says) go somewhere else for the first few days (£££  )
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You'll need to Register first of course.
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@CamillaMcPhee, Are you with a Tour Operator or DIY ?
A TO will either get you to the resort or take you somewhere else :: DIY - you can suit yourself
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@CamillaMcPhee,
I feel for you. The men and women who work for the lift and train companies are superb professionals and get things going when you wouldn’t think it was possible. But this has been an incredible dump that has overwhelmed even them with all their experience and it is not over yet.
We are back in the UK now. We got down the valley in a replacement bus (no trains because of avalanches) very early this morning. I do think it is unlikely they won’t get you to the resort on Saturday.
However it is really hard to call as to how much of the ski area will open. The winds are due to abate over the next couple of days from the gales we’ve been having. I think you’ll have a better idea by noon tomorrow. My betting money would be on a lot being open. If it is, you are looking OK for next week. When things do open up it is going to be incredible. The skiing was great on Sunday and Monday this week. The snow we have had since it is going to make it out of this world.
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| albob wrote: |
@CamillaMcPhee, Are you with a Tour Operator or DIY ?
A TO will either get you to the resort or take you somewhere else :: DIY - you can suit yourself |
DIY - I've seen there's a bus so can still get up there - but just hoping things will clear so we can ski.
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You'll get to see more forums and be part of the best ski club on the net.
You'll get to see more forums and be part of the best ski club on the net.
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| JohnMo wrote: |
@CamillaMcPhee,
I feel for you. The men and women who work for the lift and train companies are superb professionals and get things going when you wouldn’t think it was possible. But this has been an incredible dump that has overwhelmed even them with all their experience and it is not over yet.
We are back in the UK now. We got down the valley in a replacement bus (no trains because of avalanches) very early this morning. I do think it is unlikely they won’t get you to the resort on Saturday.
However it is really hard to call as to how much of the ski area will open. The winds are due to abate over the next couple of days from the gales we’ve been having. I think you’ll have a better idea by noon tomorrow. My betting money would be on a lot being open. If it is, you are looking OK for next week. When things do open up it is going to be incredible. The skiing was great on Sunday and Monday this week. The snow we have had since it is going to make it out of this world. |
I have my fingers and toes crossed!!!! Thanks 
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A decent number of Zermatt lifts open today and some blue sky. Still looks as though all Cervinia lifts are closed as they get to grips with the snow.
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snowHeads are a friendly bunch.
snowHeads are a friendly bunch.
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We are in Cervinia at the moment and wish we where elsewhere. The entire lift operation has been closed for the last 3 days. Day 1 due to high winds. Day 2 almost no wind and today flat calm and bluebird skies. A couple of lifts are open in Valtoutnenche but the road is closed due to Avalanche. It should be open very soon. Even so we can't get there because the ski bus is not a ski bus. As I posted a few days ago the bus to Valtournenche is the regulars service bus. There are only 8 per day ranging from an hour to two and a half hours. Even so, it is upto the driver if he lets you on with skis. They should go in the cargo space under the bus but the twice we have tried it's been full and the driver would not let skis on board. A taxi is 80 euros each way which for 2 people is a big chunk. I find it hard to believe that a ski resort that advertises its self as having X km of piste spreading multiple villages doesn't have a dedicated ski bus. Especially since the mountain crossing is prone to closure at even the slightest hint of a fart.
Yes the resort has had a lot of snow yesterday but the snow stopes at 8pm last night. The piste bashers didn't start until mid morning today. We have spoken to lots of people over the last few days......because at the moment in Cervinia that's all there is to do and we have not spoken to anyone who would return here. The wind factor, the difficulty in getting to other villages and the general not giving a stuff makes me agree. To the poster asking weather they will be able to get to Zermat I would think by then you can and I hope you will find the snow incredible because it looks it from down here but I would also say stay over that side of the mountain.
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And love to help out and answer questions and of course, read each other's snow reports.
And love to help out and answer questions and of course, read each other's snow reports.
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| CamillaMcPhee wrote: |
Hi guys - first time travelling to Zermatt on Sat for a week. Worried about getting there and not being able to ski/even get to resort/sitting in hotel looking at snow.
From those with experience - shall we just go for it… or (as my older and wiser brother says) go somewhere else for the first few days (£££ ) |
Just go.
The snow is great.
And if you get snowed in, you get a cool bar story for the rest of your life.
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@CamillaMcPhee,
The train up the valley from Visp (or Brig) to Zermatt has reopened. As was said before a good proportion of the lifts and pistes on the Swiss side were open today. As they get more and more avalanche safe and the wind drops (as forecast and indeed has already happened) they will open up more. It should be a fantastic week to be out there. There is a lot more snow due early next week. Hopefully that will be a plus rather than a minus for you.
Cervinia is clearly having more problems with the volume of snow. It has been awful for those who have lost several days. But it could be great for you once it does open up as the snow will be incredible. At this time of year it is so much more sunny than a lot of the Swiss side.
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You know it makes sense.
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This is the sort of idiocy the rescue services have to deal with. Air Zermatt posted this bloke deciding he would go along a closed road to inspect the end of an avalanche (because of course there are never secondary falls). He is either the least perturbed man in the world or the biggest idtiot. As Air Zermatt said: mehr Glück als Verstand (more luck than sense):
https://www.youtube.com/embed/Oyx5UGyP_E4
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Otherwise you'll just go on seeing the one name:
Otherwise you'll just go on seeing the one name:
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That's an amazing video.
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Poster: A snowHead
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| Gyro wrote: |
| the general not giving a stuff makes me agree. |
Must admitt in our time last year there when lots of lifts were closed that was what I felt about the town as well
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Obviously A snowHead isn't a real person
Obviously A snowHead isn't a real person
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| stevew wrote: |
| Gyro wrote: |
| the general not giving a stuff makes me agree. |
Must admitt in our time last year there when lots of lifts were closed that was what I felt about the town as well |
Nothing much has changed since I last visited in January 1983! We had a day of most incredible snow followed by the slowest ever efforts to get the mountain up and running again. I'm all for safety but this was indifference to the customer on a massive scale.
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Well, the person's real but it's just a made up name, see?
Well, the person's real but it's just a made up name, see?
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| JohnMo wrote: |
This is the sort of idiocy the rescue services have to deal with. Air Zermatt posted this bloke deciding he would go along a closed road to inspect the end of an avalanche (because of course there are never secondary falls). He is either the least perturbed man in the world or the biggest idtiot. As Air Zermatt said: mehr Glück als Verstand (more luck than sense):
https://www.youtube.com/embed/Oyx5UGyP_E4 |
yikes
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You need to Login to know who's really who.
You need to Login to know who's really who.
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Darwin Award. Amazing not awarded posthumously....
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Anyway, snowHeads is much more fun if you do.
Anyway, snowHeads is much more fun if you do.
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anybody know if the Valtouranche to Cervinia road is open yet?
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You'll need to Register first of course.
You'll need to Register first of course.
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I was in Cervinia 2nd week of December and was frustrated at the lack of a bus service to and from Valtourneche so hitched it both ways, didn't have to wait longer than 10 min either way. The trip back was interesting though as the the young driver lost the rear end of his Fiat on the snowy road and we crashed into the barriers, he was most apologetic to me, put the car into reverse drove out and carried on!
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Zermatt due one of its biggest storms in years over the next few days.
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Say Zermatt will be getting 2m of fresh snow from mid mountain and up during 48h. That must for sure result in big limitations of open terrain several days after? Will be very interesting to follow.
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You'll get to see more forums and be part of the best ski club on the net.
You'll get to see more forums and be part of the best ski club on the net.
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A storm is not something the Zermatt weather forecast is predicting. "snow showers" only. We will see
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Any first hand accounts on the storm? Looks like the slush by the bahnhof has turned white now. Could be a lot of accumulation at altitude already?
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snowHeads are a friendly bunch.
snowHeads are a friendly bunch.
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The official total so far is ~50cm fell at midmountain up to midday today.
Some forecasts calling for another 50-150cm in the next 24-48hrs.
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And love to help out and answer questions and of course, read each other's snow reports.
And love to help out and answer questions and of course, read each other's snow reports.
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Another monster dump for Zermatt! Schwarztor in January?
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You know it makes sense.
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This is about as good as it gets for Zermatt. Even though temperatures are borderline down in town, it looks like the town is still getting buried. Wind direction and moisture and lined up perfectly for an intense, long duration snow event. It looks like nearly 1 meter of snow will have fallen on some parts of the mountain by day's end and snow depths should approach or exceed 3 meters in many areas. That's impressive considering some areas were bare or nearly bare just a month ago.
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Otherwise you'll just go on seeing the one name:
Otherwise you'll just go on seeing the one name:
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Record snow depths up high in Zermatt for this time of year according to SLF!
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Poster: A snowHead
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Level 5 in Zermatt, almost unheard of in recent history.
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Obviously A snowHead isn't a real person
Obviously A snowHead isn't a real person
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All closed and Cervinia. No expert in these things but my daughter who is in Cervinia has heard no blasting as yet. Presumeably far too risky still to look at this
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Well, the person's real but it's just a made up name, see?
Well, the person's real but it's just a made up name, see?
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Yep. Everything is closed for the day on the Swiss side as well. Plus the Cervinia-Valtournenche road is closed. On the Swiss side both the railway and the road are closed up from Visp. Zermatt even had a power cut this morning.
It is still snowing so I wonder if they will wait until this evening (when it is due to have stopped) before attempting avalanche control. The next few days look fairly settled. So hopefully those sitting in their rooms staring out the window will get a good few days.
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You need to Login to know who's really who.
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Just seen a thing from SRF Meteo saying that the last time we were at level 5 avalanche risk was nine years ago. Power seems to have gone again - and warnings that there could be more power outages to come. People are being asked to stay indoors. It really is dramatic stuff.
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Anyway, snowHeads is much more fun if you do.
Anyway, snowHeads is much more fun if you do.
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We were in Zermatt Xmas 2011/ New Year 2012 and all the mountains including the walking paths were closed because of avalanche risk. I don’t know what the avalanche risk was but we have been to Zermatt over many years and this was the first time we couldn’t even walk up to Furi! We didn’t realise that the rail and road links were closed as well until we took my sister-in-law to the station as she was going home early. The place was chaos as it was the first train that had been allowed out for a couple of days. The train was overloaded and when it got to Täsch they had to persuade people to leave it to go down to Visp by coach. She stayed on and said she didn’t regret the decision as the road was one huge traffic jam as people took the opportunity to leave. It was reported in the Brit papers at the time. We had no problems with the electricity - seems that this is an even more extreme event.
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You'll need to Register first of course.
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I'm seeing reports that folks in Zermatt village are "stranded" due to avy risk getting down to Taesch!
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I love the Guardian and The Daily Mail (interesting bedfellows) reporting that 13,000 tourists are "trapped" in Zermatt. Well it is a Tuesday so the vast majority of them would have no intention of leaving until the weekend. They will be a lot more concerned that they can't get onto the pistes than an alleged inability to get away down the valley. In addition those who do need to leave are being given a lift in the helicopters down to Täsch from where the replacement buses are running down the valley. Not quite such a good story though.
The website is showing an intention to open the whole Swiss side, but not the Italian link, tomorrow. A lot of work to be done between now and then but hopefully that happens. The snow should be not too bad compensation for losing today.
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Re: the power cuts - it's ironic that there's a reservoir at Zmutt which is part of a huge hydroelectric system linked by underground tunnels. Unfortunately, from what I can see, Zermatt has only the hydro- bit. The generating stations are miles away so the electricity has to get back to Zermatt by cable, at least some of which are overground and therefore presumably vulnerable. There's an old power station in Zermatt, but it's been turned into an 'event location'...
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You'll get to see more forums and be part of the best ski club on the net.
You'll get to see more forums and be part of the best ski club on the net.
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I'm wondering if CamillaMcPhee made it or decided on somewhere else....?
Hope she comes back and tells us her story
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FAQ
We’ve visited Zermatt many times and only had a problem with all the mountains closed in one exceptional year. Oh dear, it looks like it is another exceptional year. I do hope it has worked out OK for her. As Whitegold said (I can’t believe I’m agreeing with him) at least she will have a cool bar story to tell 
