 Poster: A snowHead
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It was a nice day's skiing yesterday. The snow was generally very good on piste. firm and grippy. It stayed that way above above 2000m all day but was softening towards the end of the day but not slushy lower down even down to 1600. Some runs were closed or I would not advise doing them. Traverese from Gollet down to 1600 has long bare patches which need walking over, the black ecureuils piste had some icy sections and the odd bare patch.
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Obviously A snowHead isn't a real person
Obviously A snowHead isn't a real person
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It was a bit windy today and the results was a couple of inconsistent pistes where an area of hardpack was followed by a patch of softwindblown snow immediately afterward. The wind made a few bits interesting especially the top of the arpette lift where skiers were being blown along the ridge and snowboarders blown over.
However, the vaste majority of pistes are in excellent condition and lift queues non existant. We even walked straight onto Varet. The essentials pass is proving useless as the queues for the express lanes are the same length as the those for the classic pass, about 3 or 4 people.
The snow is firm in the morning but by 15:30 getting soft below 2200. Soft but not slushy.
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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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Great report John, thanks. Watching it all like a hawk as we head out on Saturday.
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@johnE, bit windy putting it mildly! And yes agree about the top Arpette - now I know what a kite feels like.
Agree that pistes are holding up well, lots of decent skiing to be had. A bit sugary and lumpy lower down but fine
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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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Very light snow falling in 1600 at the moment. It's a bit murky so we are not feeling too enthusiastic to get out skiing
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Not sure if this is the correct place but has anybody been to Les Arcs with Crystal and bought lift passes through them?
I'm travelling with Crystal this Sunday and have ordered lift passes through them as they had an offer on at the time of booking. I've ordered the 6 day Essential lift passes which if you buy direct has the option to add the half day on arrival at no extra cost.
Has anybody any experience of whether this will be added on if supplied through Crystal? We land at 9.20am so potentially (dependant on other flights) could be in resort at a decent time.
The reps details will be available on Friday so I can check with them but just wondered if anyone had travelled with them and knew?
Thanks 
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@GottaCatchEmAll, I haven't travelled with Crystal but the free half day on arrival is standard. It should be on your pass no worries. And you will know for sure when you click through the first gate!
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Poor visibility today but has snowed most of today, really freshened pistes up. Had some lovely skiing today
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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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As the cloud was low we headed over to vallandry expecting the world and his dog to be there, but the place was almost deserted. We had pistes to ourselves went straight onto lifts. And had lovely pistes. Fantastic skiing.
It was a bit tougher on the trunk routes in 1800. They were bumpy under the fresh snow and I kept getting thrown about. A bit of a shame as I vow to never being out of contact with the snow while skiing. Once again it was a case of red runs being easier than blue.
We stopped off at the arpette for lunch for the first time since it was renovated. It wasn't too bad, but more expensive than we usually pay,55 euros for 3 meals. I suppose the 2 ladies having puddings was the reason for the high price. The waiter served restaurant is closing for the season at the weekend. Only 4 more weeks to go.
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| johnE wrote: |
| We stopped off at the arpette for lunch for the first time since it was renovated. |
Will probably give it a try when I'm back out in mid-April, assuming it will still be reachable on skis. I don't stop for lunch that often, but when I do that and the one at the top of Transarc/Arcabulle have been my most frequent stops.
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snowHeads are a friendly bunch.
snowHeads are a friendly bunch.
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| Quote: |
Will probably give it a try when I'm back out in mid-April, assuming it will still be reachable on skis.
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I would be very suprised if you couldn't reach it on skis. It would mean the whole 1800, 1600 sectors is closed down.
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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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Snowing this morning and settling down in Vallandry 
Set to clear up later so may have a relaxed start and head out 10ish
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Can anyone hazard a guess at how busy Les Arcs will be on Easter Saturday? Thinking of doing a day trip but unsure about traffic to bourg/how busy the slopes will be
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You know it makes sense.
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@northernrookie, it’s mainly change over day so don’t think the slopes will be busy
If you’re travelling to Bourg early Sat I don’t think k you’ll have issues either, as traffic will be heading other way! Likewise will have largely cleared later in day.
Despite it being Easter hols and fresh snow, it’s really not busy here. Couple of pinch points but car parks in Vallandry barely half full.
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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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@northernrookie, very hard to say on either question.
The resort is quiet at the moment but since there is fresh snow and it is a Bank Holiday weekend I have little idea what will happen on Saturday. I suspect a lot of British visitors (there are a lot here at the moment) will leave but there will be the usual weekenders from the local towns will arrive. I'm expecting friends from grenoble to arrive for the long weekend.
As a rough guess I'll expect the roads to be busyish but without major holdups and the pistes to be slightly busier than yesterday when they were deserted.
It looks like 10cm of snow fell last night and there is snow lying on the roads. It's still snowing heavily.⁶
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Poster: A snowHead
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| johnE wrote: |
| Quote: |
Will probably give it a try when I'm back out in mid-April, assuming it will still be reachable on skis.
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I would be very suprised if you couldn't reach it on skis. It would mean the whole 1800, 1600 sectors is closed down. |
As mentioned previously, April 2011 had to take off skis just to get to Arpette chair. Transarc mid-station down to 1800 was kept open with a fairly thin strip of snow. Not expecting it to be anything like that in a couple of weeks!
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Obviously A snowHead isn't a real person
Obviously A snowHead isn't a real person
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Two days to go and thrilled to see it snowing!
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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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Just stopped for a morning coffee.its still snowing. We manged some fresh tracks in the powder this morning  but only from the vizelle lift where no one ever goes.
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You need to Login to know who's really who.
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Went over to La Plagne today, lovely fresh snow and empty pistes over on Champagny side.
Top of Roche de Mio was awful, blowing a gale, stinging snow and couldn’t see hand in front of face.
Now lovely and sunny sitting on balcony.
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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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Well lovely morning, but temps higher today. Snow very slushy lower down from 11ish.
A much wind disrupted afternoon with entire Arc bowl closed, meaning it was very busy on 1800 side. At one stage they closed Vallandry lift as well!
Still a very good week and overall runs holding up well.
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You'll need to Register first of course.
You'll need to Register first of course.
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Last night and today are one of those snow eating periods. When I went out to the car at 4:00 it was above freezing, 2 degrees. The sky was covered and it felt warm. It got warmer during the day and the snow was getting very heavy lower down. It was decent above the Cachette lift (2100m) and to emphasise the point there was a queue for the Chocheret lift which is unheard of. I think a fair bit of 2000 was closed but it didn't seem to push too many people over to 1600/1800. The slopes were quiet. There were probably less than half a dozen on Arolles when we went down it to get home.
The forecast for tomorrow looks pretty much the same so I think I'll head up to the Col de la Chal area or Varet if it opens. It was closed today. It would be good if the sky cleared this evening which might just happen as I have seen some beams of sunshine.
As a note; the Yuge app is reporting Comborciere (run not lift) as closed for the rest of the season.
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Another warm and overcast day today. The snow was very heavy, wet and soft low down but better above 2000m. But due to forecast high winds all lifts upto the ridge and the vast majority in Arc 2000 were closed. Combining that forcing the Arc2000 to bus around to 1600, the usual Saturday skiers and restricted lifts on the 1600/1800 side made the pistes crowded and some serious lift queues, over 10 minutes for Vagere. There was even a queue for Charmetttoger!
However the pistes are still almost 100% covered and there is some excellent skiing to be had. The soft snow just tires the knees a lot.
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We're here and I write this from the Grizzly chair. Decided to hang out in P-V this morning as we'll likely head up into the 2000 bowl after lunch. I've not come down as far as this before. Some gorgeous reds over here. Very forgiving. I might even get Mr. O on them.
Small snowflakes falling now. Generally a really lovely day.
You still up for a morning ski John?
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You'll get to see more forums and be part of the best ski club on the net.
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@Owlette, sounds a good idea. When and where should meetup? I'm only free tomorrow morning
Having gone down secret to 2000 this morning I wouldn't recommend going over. The bulk of the area is still closed.
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@johnE, My 12 year old went over this morning and it sounds like he had a very different morning to me!
I have to drop the boys at Transarc bottom station at 0915 so am free from then. I have to collect them from the same place at 12. Where do you fancy?
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snowHeads are a friendly bunch.
snowHeads are a friendly bunch.
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Moving the clocks forward an hour meant that we had good spring snow for a little longer today, but the afternoon snow was really wet and very tiring to ski in. From 1600 we saw that Combourciere was running so took the chance that we could get back from 2000 and headed down Secret. It was quiet and in excellent condition. However, Arc 2000 wasn't as open as we thought with a huge queue for Pre st Espirit. The Vallee de l'Arc is usually packed so it was an eerie experience to find ourselves virtually alone on it.
Like most of the residents of 2000 we headed back to the Arc 1800 side, which was very crowded. Well the blues were crowded the reds such as Vagere virtually empty.
For the first time this trip we used the priority queues for some lifts but they were only saving 3 or 4 minutes over our classic pass friends.
Let us hope there is a good freeze tonight to firm up the pistes and a drop in the wind so that the skiers are spread more evenly over the domain. Looking out of our apartment window I can see people packing up their cars so the resort may be quieter anyway. I was chatting to a couple of guys on the lift today who were only in Les Arcs for the holiday weekend so the numbers may be reducing as the week progresses.
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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 one joining the Les Arcs roll call here!
Have just woken up to the delightful sight of fresh snow all over the ground and trees in Arc 1800. Looks like about 5-10 cm and it's still coming down (lightly).
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I wish I could post photos. I opened the living room curtains this morning and just said 'whoa'. Lovely to see a thick blanket that's come down overnight. The sky is looking promising too, with fluffy white clouds and patches of blue.
Our afternoon of skiing was similar to John's yesterday. We went back over to P-V as 1800 was very crowded. The queue for the Carreley lift was utter chaos. The true Brit in my husband came out as he grumbled about people not queuing correctly. It was quieter over in P-V but as noted by John, it was very wet. Coming back down into 1800 at the end of the day was really tough going with huge moguls of slush just waiting to eat your skis.
Good shout about people leaving after the holiday weekend. I did say to my husband that last year we left on Easter Saturday so didn't see the impact of le jour férié. Also, your comment about the clock change has solved something that was puzzling us. We couldn't work out last night why our watches were showing an hour behind when we both recalled changing them on the train in. We'd forgotten about the spring change happening. Good thing I kept an eye on the time with my phone yesterday morning, rather than my watch. I'd have been late collecting my children otherwise!
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You know it makes sense.
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Only a couple cm here in 1600 and the sky is starting to clear. It looks beautiful coating the trees.
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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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It was completely different today than yesterday. First of all it snowed during the night and on and off during the morning. The hoardes from yesterday had gone elesewhere (there are still cars being packed up as I look out the apartment window). The visibilty suffered a bit in the afternoon but we could at least see from piste marker to piste marker. The snow was getting wet and heavy as we returned to Arc 1600 shortly after lunch time and some biggish moguls formed on some slopes but overall it was excellent skiing conditions.
And we had a lovely morning skiing around the Vallandry sector with @Owlette.
The piste of the day was Carreley an infrequently done variation on Froide Fontaine. Even at 13:00 it still had pockets of fresh powder.
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Poster: A snowHead
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Probably been asked a 1000 times - but not been answered to me.  With the construction of the massive new Pré St. Esprit chair has there any parking option gone snuffed out down there? Couldn't see anything last week, but only had a glance. Thanks very much!
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Obviously A snowHead isn't a real person
Obviously A snowHead isn't a real person
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Great morning skiing with JohnE and his wife today. They took me down some lovely quiet blues in Vallandry that I'd not been to before. I'll be taking Mr. O over there tomorrow. We had a crack at a very mogully Reches. I wound up walking the last section as my skis had popped off and my boots were so full of snow that I couldn't get clipped back in. Once at the bottom, I was able to clear them easily and off we went.
We went back up Grizzly and I did my first French black under the guidance of John and his wife. We skied Écureuils until it met with the blue near the learner area as the rest of it was closed.
As we got lower down, the fog rolled in and the snow came down like ice. It was a bit dicey there for a bit as we could only see a few feet in front of us. We went back up Grizzly and down towards 1800, staying on nice cruisey blues as my legs were ready for a rest. We said goodbye in 1800 where I headed off to collect my boys.
The boys and I headed up the Transarc, planning to take Traversée back down to Chantel, except my 12 year old overshot 10 and I and ended up on the blue Charmettoger piste. So we followed that and then Grand Melezes back towards 1800. We got some off piste fun in as we cut across to pick up the Mille 8 green. Loads of fun putting fresh tracks in deep power. Then it was Villards up and across to the apartment for lunch.
We opted to not ski this afternoon as it was snowing hard over lunch and we've had a manic few days, so we've been relaxing, plus swimming this afternoon. I'm fighting a chest infection. I can ski, but walking reduces me to a coughing mess. So an afternoon of rest to ensure a great rest of the weeks skiing seems a good plan. Typically though, it has been lovely and sunny this afternoon.
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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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| Tristero wrote: |
| Probably been asked a 1000 times - but not been answered to me. With the construction of the massive new Pré St. Esprit chair has there any parking option gone snuffed out down there? Couldn't see anything last week, but only had a glance. Thanks very much! |
There are a few spaces there now, but not many, perhaps a dozen or so I think from memory
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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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@Tristero, There are a couple of spaces but I'm not sure if they are open to the general public and I vaguely remember a sign there saying no overnight parking.
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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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Looks like it's going to be a slow start today! A fair bit of fresh snow overnight and still dumping at 1950. Hoping it will brighten up later on.
Yesterday (Monday) we had all seasons in one day. Some gorgeous fresh tracks in the morning sun (under the Plagnettes), followed by heavy snow and poor visibility between 11:30 and 2, then lovely sunshine and some great skiing over in 1800.
We'll take this any day, given it's April and the warmth we've had. Happy Days!!!
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The snow has stopped now in 1600. and the cloud is starting to lift. The forecast is for sunshine this afternoon. It's looking to be a great last day of the season for me
Heavy snow this time of the year is not uncommon. In fact half the times I've had to use snow chains (once) is in April. The equinox is a time for stormy weather.
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We’re going to Arc 2000 next week. Temps are looking very high indeed. 16 degrees on Monday. Staying warm all week! What does this mean for our skiing?
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@Fifi1975, late start, early stop, and enjoy the afternoon sun at the Bulle bar.
We'll be there too...
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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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PS: welcome to Snowheads!
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Ah thank you and thank you for the welcome 
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FAQ
