Snow Report 30 December 2016 - Europe & Japan

Happo One 29.12.16 - Happo Facebook

A return to sunny days on the pistes for the European Alps. Meanwhile, in Japan the snow has been falling very nicely indeed and just in time for the end of year holidays.

JAPAN

There have been some great falls of snow across Japan over the last few days and this snowy weather pattern is set to continue.

The season is well under way and all areas are open now.

Snow returns tonight and continues on and off into the weekend, which brings some sunny spells for a great new year's skiing and riding on the slopes.

Conditions at my featured Japanese ski resorts:

Yuzawa (Joetsu Kokusai) - 40cm at top (1,017m)

Nozawa Onsen 29.12.16 - www.nozawaski.com/

Niseko (Grand Hirafu) - 230cm at top (1,000m), 85cm at base

Nozawa Onsen - 95cm at Yamabiko (1,407m), 30cm at Nagasaka (616m)

Hakuba (Happo One) - 80cm at top (Usagidaira), 20cm at bottom

Zao Onsen - 60cm at top, 5cm at base

Myoko Kogen - 100cm (Akakan)

FRANCE

Fine and sunny weather returned to the French Alps after last week's snowfall. A burst of snow, followed by a long run of sunny, mild weather has characterised the start to winter in France. Perhaps that trend will change in the new year.

Val Thorens 28.12.16 - Val Thorens Facebook

More sun and no snow, at least for this weekend. Considerable snow is needed to get the most terrain open.

Conditions at my featured French ski stations are:

Val Thorens - 55cm@2300m, 30/30 lifts, 71/85 pistes

Val d'Isere - 30cm@1850m, 71/77 lifts, 129/167 pistes

Chamonix (Grands Montets) - 25cm@1972m

Isola 2000 - 5cm@2000m, 37 pistes

Serre Chevalier - 92cm@2100m, 51/62 lifts, 57/81 pistes

Les Arcs - 10cm@1600m, 43 lifts, 70 pistes

Val d'Allos - 30cm@1800m, 18/28 lifts, 24/63 pistes

Grand Tourmalet -  30cm@1800m, 16/30 lifts, 16/61 pistes

ITALY

Cervinia made the news last week for the wrong reasons - hundreds of skiers stuck on a cable car for hours.

Madonna di Campiglio 27.12.16 - Madonna DC Facebook

More snow is needed in Italy for the lower altitude ski resorts, while the big ski areas with snowmaking are faring well.

Conditions at my featured Italian ski stations:

Madonna di Campiglio - 40cm@2250m, 0cm@1500m, 18/19 lifts, 28 runs

Madesimo - 20cm@1550m, 50cm@3000m,11/13 lifts, 18/32 runs

Monterosa - 10/150cm, 44/45 lifts, 63/93 runs

Val Gardena - 199/207 lifts open across Dolomiti Superski

Snow Report 23 December 2016 - Europe & Japan

Snow at last for the European Alps. Just in time for Christmas skiing. In Japan, all of the big ski resorts have opened now.

Happo One 22.12.16 - happo-one.

JAPAN

Another good fall of snow for the weekend (20-50cm), before sunny skies arrived and some bluebird days.

Some warm and wet conditions descended on Honshu Tuesday, which is not really what we wanted after the promising start to the season.

Some of the weekend's snow has been lost and it has got very wet again across Honshu and Hokkaido this evening. The good news is that it should turn to snow tomorrow though and get colder once more.

Conditions at my featured Japanese ski resorts:

Akakura Kanko 22.12.16 - akr-ski.com

Yuzawa (Kagura) - Kagura is OPEN, other ski resorts in Yuzawa area are now open

Niseko (Grand Hirafu) - OPEN - 2m at top, 80cm at base

Nozawa Onsen - OPEN - 95cm top (Yamabiko), 55cm at base,

Hakuba (Happo One) - OPEN - 65cm at top (Usagidaira), 0cm at bottom

Zao Onsen - OPEN - 50cm at top, 20cm at base

Myoko Kogen - OPEN - 60cm (Akakan)

FRANCE

A cold and snowy start to the week, favouring the southernmost ski stations like Isola 2000 (30cm) and Val d'Allos (15cm) and the Massif Central with lesser amounts around Mont Blanc.

Isola 2000 20.12.16 - Isola 2000 Facebook

The weather cleared Wednesday and is set to continue mild and sunny into the weekend in the Alps.

Conditions at my featured French ski stations are:

Val Thorens - OPEN - 60cm@2300m, 30/30 lifts, 67/85 pistes

Val d'Isere - OPEN - 30cm@1850m, 70/77 lifts, 137/167 pistes

Chamonix (Grands Montets) - OPEN - 29cm@1972m

Isola 2000 - OPEN - 60cm@2000m, 30 pistes

Serre Chevalier - OPEN - 90cm@2100m, 47/62 lifts, 57/81 pistes

Les Arcs - OPEN - 10cm@1600m, 41 lifts, 70 pistes

Val d'Allos - OPEN - 30cm@1800m, 16/28 lifts, 21/63 pistes

Grand Tourmalet -  OPEN - 30cm@1800m, 16/30 lifts, 15/61 pistes

ITALY

A snowy start to the week for Italy as well, but only really favouring the western ski resorts, especially Limone Piemonte.

Limone Piemonte 21.12.16 - Limone Piemonte Facebook

Snow is fairly patchy below 2000m across Italy, so head to the higher ski areas.

Conditions at my featured Italian ski stations:

Madonna di Campiglio - OPEN - 40cm@2250m, 0cm@1500m, 15/19 lifts, 25 runs

Madesimo - OPEN - 20cm@1550m, 50cm@3000m, 8/13 lifts, 14/36 runs

Monterosa - OPEN - 10/150cm, 22/45 lifts, 37/93 runs

Val Gardena - OPEN - 183/207 lifts open across Dolomiti Superski

Snow Report 16 December 2016 - Europe & Japan

More warm and sunny weather in the Alps, while a nice dump gets things moving in Japan. Are you spending Christmas on the slopes?

JAPAN

Snow arrived at the end of last week, continuing through the weekend for a nice big dump Japow style. In the storm, 20-50cm fell according to where you were.

Nozawa Onsen 12.12.16 - Nozawa Onsen Facebook

The weather cleared for a bit early in the week, before some rain arrived at lower altitudes. Then the snow began falling again.

Nozawa Onsen opened on the weekend and has begun opening more runs and lifts through the week. Its still a little thin at the bottom, as it is at Hakuba as well.

More snow is set to fall into the weekend, clearing for some awesome skiing on Sunday.

Opening dates at my featured Japanese ski resorts:

Yuzawa (Kagura) - Kagura is OPEN, other ski resorts in the Yuzawa area are open or opening this weekend.

Niseko (Grand Hirafu) - OPEN - 100cm at base

Nozawa Onsen - OPEN - 55cm at base, 120cm top (Yamabiko)

Hakuba (Happo One) - OPEN - 75cm at top (Usagidaira), 0cm at bottom

Zao Onsen - OPEN

Myoko Kogen - OPEN - 70cm (Akakan)

Les Arcs 13.12.16 - Les Arcs Facebook

FRANCE

It was a warm and sunny weekend in the French Alps. The whole week saw the sun stick around, but temperatures have cooled off somewhat today.

Looks like a sunny weekend again, and a chance of some snow next week.

Conditions at my featured French ski stations are:

Val Thorens - OPEN - 60cm@2300m, 29/30 lifts, 69/85 pistes

Val d'Isere - OPEN - 30cm@1850m, 58/77 lifts, 125/167 pistes

Chamonix (Grands Montets) - OPEN - 25cm@1972m, other Chamonix ski areas partially open this weekend

Serre Chevalier 13.12.16 - Serre Chevalier Facebook

Isola 2000 - OPEN - 26cm@2000m, 31 pistes

Serre Chevalier - OPEN - 90cm@2100m, 34/62 lifts, 48/81 pistes

Les Arcs - OPEN

Val d'Allos - OPEN - 10cm@1800m

Grand Tourmalet -  OPEN - 10cm@1800m, 8/30 lifts, 7/61 pistes

Super Besse - when there's enough snow

ITALY

Similar conditions in Northern Italy, staying sunny and clear with light winds. Nice for being out there on the slopes, but with not all lifts running yet it would be better to get a top-up before Christmas.

Speaking of Christmas, its a beautiful time of year to be in the ski villages with all the Christmas lights, markets and festivities.

Conditions at my featured Italian ski stations:

Madonna di Campiglio - OPEN - 35cm@2250m, 0cm@1500m, 16/19 lifts, 22 runs

Madesimo - OPEN - 20cm@1550m, 50cm@3000m, 6/13 lifts, 13/36 runs

Monterosa - OPEN - 20/200cm, 22/45 lifts, 35/93 runs

Val Gardena - OPEN - 166/207 lifts open across Dolomiti Superski

Snow Report 9 December 2016 - Europe & Japan

Warm and sunny on the pistes in Europe, while first snows blanket parts of Japan. The season is just getting started. Whether you are heading to Europe or Japan this northern winter, read on for the lowdown on conditions.

JAPAN

A fine and sunny weekend at the Japanese resorts. Some snow arrived Monday night, falling quite heavily in Niseko and a sprinkling on the higher areas of the Japanese Alps.

Niseko 03.12.16 - Niseko United Facebook

Snow continued on Tuesday and Wednesday for a nice fall overall so far: 20-30cm Hokkaido and 10-30cm Honshu. Myoko Kogen scored the most in the Alps, while the other resorts got a smaller fall.

The snow is set to continue falling into and through the weekend at all resorts.

Happo One had some lifts running today after the new snow. Zao Onsen got some lifts running as well.

Opening dates at my featured Japanese ski resorts:

Yuzawa (Kagura) - Kagura is OPEN

Niseko (Grand Hirafu) - OPEN - 45cm at base

Nozawa Onsen - part opening (Yamabiko) ASAP

Hakuba (Happo One) - 17th December (partially OPEN at the top)

Zao Onsen - partially OPEN (Chuo lift)

Myoko Kogen - mid-December

FRANCE

Clear and sunny days on the slopes over the last week in France. This often happens at this time of year as the early snowfalls give way to a run of mild, clear weather again.

Isola 2000 03.12.16 - Isola 2000 Facebook

Its even got warmer as the week has progressed and there's not much snow on the horizon right now.

Lets see whats open. Isola 2000 in the Southern Alps opened last weekend. Serre Chevalier opened yesterday. Grand Tourmalet in the Pyrenees suffered a further setback due to the fine weather and put the opening back another week. Les Arcs and Val'd'Allos open this weekend.

Opening dates at my featured French ski stations are:

Val Thorens - OPEN - 60cm@2300m, 26/30 lifts, 61/85 pistes

Val d'Isere - OPEN - 5cm@1850m, 64/77 lifts, 100/167 pistes

Serre Chevalier 01.12.16 - Serre Che Facebook

Chamonix (Grands Montets) - partially OPEN - 30cm@1972m (full opening from 17th December, with the other Chamonix ski areas due to partially open this weekend)

Isola 2000 - OPEN - 30cm@2000m, 22 pistes

Serre Chevalier - OPEN - 145cm@2100m, 7/62 lifts, 9/81 pistes

Les Arcs - 10th December

Val d'Allos - 10th December

Grand Tourmalet -  17th December

Super Besse - when there's enough snow

ITALY

Monterosa 05.12.16 - Monterosa Facebook

A similar story in the Italian Alps.

My featured ski resorts are now all open, at least partially. Monterosa in the Alps and Val Gardena in the Dolomites opened on the weekend.

Opening dates at my featured Italian ski stations:

Madonna di Campiglio - OPEN - 13 lifts, 17 runs

Madesimo - OPEN - 5/13 lifts, 10/36 runs

Monterosa - OPEN - 33/45 lifts, 48/93 runs

Val Gardena - OPEN - 169/207 lifts open across Dolomiti Superski

Snow Report 2 December 2016 - Europe & Japan

A few of the big ski stations in France and Italy opened last weekend, and more are scheduled to start lifts spinning this weekend. In Japan, its still early days but there is some limited skiing available.

Niseko 02.12.16 - www.grand-hirafu.jp

JAPAN

Rain on the weekend hasn't helped get things ready, but for most of Japan its still early days. Hokkaido, however, has earlier starts and Niseko has got some lifts running and the season under way.

Elsewhere its still pretty grassy even on the peaks. Its snowing in Hokkaido today and, after the weekend, it looks like more on the way up there and maybe snow down in Niigata and Nagano as well.

Opening dates at my featured Japanese ski resorts:

Yuzawa (Kagura) - limited skiing at the top of Kagura
Niseko (Grand Hirafu) - OPEN - 45cm at base
Nozawa Onsen - part opening (Yamabiko) ASAP
Hakuba (Happo One) - 17th December (part opening ASAP)
Zao Onsen - early December
Myoko Kogen - mid-December

Val d'Isere 28.11.16 - Val d'Isere Facebook

FRANCE

Its only the first week of December and there is already a lot of skiing available at the higher stations in France. This despite not much snow falling in the last week.

Val Thorens has almost double the lifts and runs compared to last week and Val d'Isere has extensive terrain for skiing and riding. Isola 2000 and Serre Chevalier have lifts spinning for the first time this weekend.

However, there's not so much snow below 2000m, so Grand Tourmalet, for one, has put back its opening another week.

Opening dates at my featured French ski stations are:

Val Thorens - OPEN - 85cm@2300m, 25/30 lifts, 48/85 pistes
Val d'Isere - OPEN - 5cm@1850m, 44/77 lifts, 75/167 pistes
Chamonix (Grands Montets) - OPEN on the weekend - 30cm@1972m
Isola 2000 - 3rd December partial opening
Serre Chevalier - 7th December (with a pre-opening on 3rd December)
Grand Tourmalet -  10th December
Les Arcs - 10th December
Val d'Allos - 10th December
Super Besse - 10th December

Madonna di Campiglio 30.11.16 - Madonna di Campiglio Facebook

ITALY

Some of the larger northern Italian ski resorts are already open for limited skiing.

In the Dolomites, Val Gardena and other Sella Ronda ski areas open this weekend.

Opening dates at my featured Italian ski stations:

Madonna di Campiglio - OPEN - 11 lifts, 10 runs
Madesimo - OPEN - 4 lifts, 7 runs
Monterosa - 3rd December
Val Gardena - 3rd December

Snow Report 25 November 2016 - Europe & Japan

The first snows making it down to village level arrived this week for many ski resorts in Japan. In Europe, the season really gets started this weekend with some more ski stations opening.

Happo One 25.11.16 - www.happo-one.jp

JAPAN

Snow began falling yesterday in Japan, down to town level as well as the peaks.

The snowy weather has arrived in Honshu and Hokkaido at the same time, so everyone's getting a whitening in the mountains! Just a dusting in Niigata and Nagano, but a nice little dump in Hokkaido.

Opening dates at my featured Japanese ski resorts:

Yuzawa (Kagura) - ASAP
Niseko (Grand Hirafu) - ASAP
Nozawa Onsen - part opening 26th November (maybe!)
Hakuba (Happo One) - 17th December (part opening 26th November - unlikely!)
Zao Onsen - early December
Myoko Kogen - mid-December

FRANCE

Good snow in France for the end of November, particularly for those stations that are above 2000m. Val Thorens opened last weekend and already has 13 lifts running.

Val Thorens 26.11.16 - Val Thorens Facebook

Val d'Isere is opening tomorrow with the Pissaillas glacier/Iseran, Fornet, Solaise, and Bellevarde sectors all open. Chamonix (Grands Montets) is also opening this weekend.

Grand Tourmalet in the Pyrenees has put back opening to the 3rd December.

Opening dates at my featured French ski stations are:

Val Thorens - OPEN - 80cm@2300m, 13/30 lifts, 32/85 pistes
Val d'Isere - 26th November - 10cm@1850m,
Grand Tourmalet -  3rd December
Chamonix (Grands Montets) - 26th November - 58cm@1972m
Isola 2000 - 3rd December
Les Arcs - 10th December
Val d'Allos - 10th December
Serre Chevalier - 7th December (with a pre-opening on the weekend of 3/4th December)
Super Besse - 10th December

ITALY

There is still some snow at higher altitudes in Italy.

Monterosa 23.11.16 - Monterosa Facebook

Madonna di Campiglio opened last weekend and is opening again this weekend for skiing on the Groste area.

Similarly there were slopes open at Valchiavenna, which is reopening this weekend along with Monterosa.

Opening dates at my featured Italian ski stations:

Madonna di Campiglio - 26th November
Madesimo - 26th November
Monterosa - 26th November
Val Gardena - 3rd December

Snow Report 17 November 2016 - Europe & Japan

Its looking like there might be a strong start to the season in the European Alps, with snowfalls through the weekend and more on the way.

Les Arcs 15.11.16 - Les Arcs Facebook

JAPAN

For Japan, however, not much snowfall in the past week, with some warm temperatures across the mountain regions. A return to cooler temperatures today in Hokkaido, but remaining warm on Honshu.

Opening dates at my featured Japanese ski resorts, subject to snow:

Yuzawa (Kagura) - 19th November
Niseko (Grand Hirafu) - 23rd November
Nozawa Onsen - part opening 26th November
Hakuba (Happo One) - 17th December (part opening 26th November)
Zao Onsen - early December
Myoko Kogen - mid-December

Argentiere village 16.11.16 - Chamonix Facebook

FRANCE

Snow fell through the weekend. It was a nice dump actually, and snow fell quite low for this time of year and is sticking around.

Chamonix has groomed some slopes as a result, opening for skiing at Grands Montets this weekend.

Opening dates at my featured French ski stations are:

Val Thorens - 26th November
Val d'Isere - 26th November
Grand Tourmalet - 26th November
Chamonix (Grands Montets) - 3rd December (partial opening weekend 19th/20th November)
Isola 2000 - 3rd December
Les Arcs - 10th December
Val d'Allos - 10th December
Serre Chevalier - 7th December (with a pre-opening on the weekend of 28/29th November)
Super Besse - 10th December

Valchiavenna 16.11.16 - Facebook

ITALY

Snow at the higher northern resorts through the weekend. Good cover at some ski areas already means opening dates have been fixed and brought forward.

Opening dates at my featured Italian ski stations:

Madonna di Campiglio - 19th November
Madesimo - 26th November (with a pre-opening on the weekend of 19th/20th November)
Monterosa - 25th November
Val Gardena - 3rd December

Snow Report 10 November 2016 - Europe & Japan

Greetings snow fans!

We're not too far away now from the Northern snow season openings - the first typically occur in late November. The weather is changing and as autumn begins to give way to winter there has been a bit of snow around to get us in the mood.

Niseko - Niseko webcam

JAPAN

A fair bit of snow fell earlier this week on Hokkaido. A dusting was observed on the peaks in Honshu, such as at Hakuba and Yuzawa.

Opening dates at my featured Japanese ski resorts:

Yuzawa (Kagura) - 19th November
Niseko (Grand Hirafu) - 23rd November
Nozawa Onsen - 26th November
Hakuba (Happo One) - 16th December
Zao Onsen - December
Myoko Kogen - December

FRANCE

Some good snowfalls earlier this week in the Northern French Alps. with snow down to resort level.

The glacier at Tignes - Tignes Facebook

The Grand Motte glacier at Tignes opened in October with five trails available. However, we are a few weeks away from proper resort openings.

Opening dates at my featured French ski stations:

Val Thorens - 26th November
Val d'Isere - 26th November
Grand Tourmalet - 26th November
Chamonix (Grands Montets) - 3rd December
Isola 2000 - 3rd December

Cervinia - Cervinia Facebook

Les Arcs - 10th December
Val d'Allos - 10th December
Serre Chevalier - 12th December (with a pre-opening on the weekend of 28/29th November)
Super Besse - 12th December

ITALY

Breuil-Cervinia is open for skiing on the upper slopes.

Opening dates at my featured Italian ski stations:

Monterosa - 25th November
Madesimo - Opening date not yet fixed
Madonna di Campiglio - Opening date not yet fixed
Val Gardena - 3rd December

Snow Report 21 October 2016 - Europe & Japan

With the Southern Hemisphere ski and boarding season wrapping up, its time to look forward to the coming Northern Hemisphere season which begins at the end of 2016 and runs into 2017.

Its at this time that the ski resorts across Europe, North America and Northern Asia begin to get things ready.

Opening dates are still some way off. November usually sees some high-altitude resorts get started, but mid-December is more typical. Depending on the season, conditions can be quite marginal with limited skiing well into December some years.

My reports focus on Japan, France and Italy, as that's where I've skied before. If you're planning your trips or already booked, you might be interested in reading some of my previous trip reports. They are:

Skiing in Central Japan 2011 Part 1 and Part 2 

Ski Japan 2012 - Snow, Onsen, Sushi Part 1 and Part 2 and Part 3 

Ski Japan 2013 - Powder, Onsen, Sake Part 1 and Part 2 

Ski France and Italy 2013-14 Part 1 and Part 2 and Part 3

Happy planning!

Snow Report 29 September 2016 - Australia & New Zealand

The 2016 ski season is rapidly coming to an end, but there are a few options on both sides of the Tasman if you're after a few last turns in Australia or New Zealand.

AUSTRALIA

Snow conditions:

Mt Baw Baw - Closed for season
Mt Buller - Closed for season
Mt Hotham - Closed for season

Falls Creek - Still good cover in Sun Valley with lifts open until 2 October 2016.

Perisher - Fresh snow and 20 groomed runs at Perisher Valley only. Smiggins, Blue Cow and Guthega are closed. Closing date - 3 October 2016.

Thredbo - 6 lifts are open and Friday Flat base area is closed. Closing date - 3 October 2016.

Selwyn Snowfields - Closed for season


NEW ZEALAND

Its closing weekend for most South Island skifields. Time for some last turns of the season!

Mt Hutt and Cardrona are going to keep going for another week, subject to snow conditions.

North Canterbury and Nelson

Rainbow - Closed for season
Mt Lyford - Closed for season

Canterbury

Mt Hutt - Closing 9 October 2016
Porters - Closing 2 October 2016

The Mackenzie

Roundhill - Closed for season
Mt Dobson - Closed for season
Ohau - Closing 2 October 2016

Wanaka

Treble Cone - Closing 2 October 2016
Cardrona - Closing 9 October 2016

Queenstown

Coronet Peak -  Closing 2 October 2016
The Remarkables - Closing 2 October 2016

Snow Report 22 September 2016 - Australia & New Zealand

The season is starting to wrap up on both sides of the Tasman, with some of the smaller ski resorts already closed.

AUSTRALIA

After a warm and fine start to the week, a few days of rain/snow mix, but mainly rain sadly.

Snow conditions:

Mt Baw Baw - Closed for season

Mt Buller - Snow depth: 13cm, with skiing limited to Bourke Street, Summit, Family Run, Howqua and Little Buller Spur). Closing date - 2 October 2016.

Mt Hotham - Snow depth: 60cm, with the best skiing and riding in Heavenly Valley. Hotham is closing this weekend on Sunday 25 September 2016.

Falls Creek - Snow depth: 75cm, all lifts apart from the pomas are running and Summit and The Maze is closed. Still good cover in Sun Valley with lifts open until 2 October 2016.

Perisher - 19 lifts running at Perisher Valley only. Smiggins, Blue Cow and Guthega are closed. Closing date - 3 October 2016.

Thredbo - 10 lifts are open and Friday Flat base area is closed. Closing date - 3 October 2016.

Mt Hutt webcam

Selwyn Snowfields - Closed for season


NEW ZEALAND

Lots of sun this week and no snow. Things have been rapidly warming up and the snow melting. Skiing is fairly limited now at the main skifields in Canterbury.

Lots of patches now down south, even at Remarks and Cardrona and in the Treble Cone Saddle. However, the runs are holding up well and there should be good skiing into the NZ school holidays.

North Canterbury and Nelson

Rainbow - Open
Mt Lyford - Closed for season

Canterbury

Mt Hutt - Open
Porters - 2 October 2016

The Mackenzie

Roundhill - Closed for season
Mt Dobson - Closed for season
Ohau - Closing 2 October 2016

Wanaka

Treble Cone - Closing 2 October 2016
Cardrona - Closing 9 October 2016

Queenstown

Coronet Peak -  Closing 2 October 2016
The Remarkables - Closing 2 October 2016

Remarkables webcam

Coronet Peak webcam

Snow Report 15 September 2016 - Australia & New Zealand

Snow returned to the Australian ski resorts this week, while New Zealand turned on some sunny days to enjoy the great snow that fell over the last few weeks.

Falls Creek 15.09.16 - Falls Creek webcams

AUSTRALIA

More rain damaged the slopes on Tuesday. Then some very welcome spring snow arrived on Wednesday afternoon, improving conditions immensely, although not enough to reopen areas closed in the previous weeks.

In Victoria, 10cm fell at Buller, 22cm at Hotham and 23cm at Falls Creek.
In NSW, 25cm fell at Perisher and 20cm at Thredbo.

School holidays begin this weekend. Perhaps some more snow to fall on and off into the weekend before the weather clears again.

Snow conditions:

Thredbo 15.09.16 - Thredbo webcams

Mt Baw Baw - Closed for season

Mt Buller - Snow depth: 23-36cm, with most of the skiing on the south side (Bourke Street, Summit, Howqua and Wombat)

Mt Hotham - Snow depth: 80cm, with skiing above the road and in Heavenly Valley

Falls Creek - Snow depth: 93cm, all lifts apart from the pomas are running and The Maze is closed.

Perisher - 23 lifts running at Perisher. Smiggins and now Guthega are closed.

Thredbo - 11 lifts are open.

Mt Hutt 14.09.16 - Mt Hutt webcams

Selwyn Snowfields - Closed for season


NEW ZEALAND

Fine weather dominated this week.

Hopefully it will stay fine this week as it is set to be quite warm.

Webcams should give a good idea about the conditions to be found around the South Island this week:

Cardrona 14.09.16 - Cardrona webcams

North Canterbury and Nelson

Rainbow 65-95cm
Mt Lyford - Closed for season

Canterbury

Mt Hutt 80-144cm
Porters 40-100cm

The Mackenzie

Roundhill Closed for season
Mt Dobson 30-46cm

The Remarkables 14.09.16 - Remarks webcams

Ohau 30-60cm

Wanaka

Treble Cone 20-94cm
Cardrona 65-110cm

Queenstown

Coronet Peak 25-100cm
The Remarkables 80-120cm

Snow Report 8 September 2016 - Australia & New Zealand

A big burst of Spring in the Australian Alps this week, while New Zealand was lucky to get a top-up of snow to freshen up the slopes.

Hotham 08.09.16 - Hotham.com.au

AUSTRALIA

It was another warm week of sunny skies and spring skiing. Temperatures up around 5-8c today and windy!

Looks like rain tomorrow, followed by some snow sometime during or after the weekend.

Snow conditions:

Mt Baw Baw - Snow depth: No snow

Mt Buller - . Snow depth: 40-60cm, with most of the skiing on the south side

Mt Hotham - . Snow depth: 88-93cm, with skiing above the road and in Heavenly Valley

Perisher 08.09.16 - Perisher.com.au

Falls Creek - . Snow depth: 97-134cm, all lifts running

Perisher - 35 lifts (down from 46 last week) running at Perisher.

Thredbo - 13 lifts are open.

Selwyn Snowfields - No snow (closed for season)


NEW ZEALAND

After some lovely weather, there were some good snowfalls this week.

Around Queenstown was the biggest dump. The Remarkables reported 55cm and the road is still to be cleared so the field can open. Coronet Peak - 45cm

Cardrona and Treble Cone, less with 15-20cm from the storm.

Rainbow 08.09.16 - Rainbow Facebook

In North Canterbury, Rainbow reported 15cm and Mt Lyford 10cm, which may at least double by tomorrow. Neither skifield is open today.

Nearer Christchurch, neither Porters (20cm) or Hutt (25cm) are open due to winds.

Dobson, Roundhill and Ohau got about 10cm each, maybe more.

The weather should clear tomorrow or Saturday for some fine days returning.

Snow conditions:

North Canterbury and Nelson

Rainbow 55-85cm
Mt Lyford 105cm

Canterbury

Mt Hutt 60-120cm
Porters 40-100cm

The Remarkables 08.09.16 - Remarks Facebook

The Mackenzie

Roundhill 60cm
Mt Dobson 40-60cm
Ohau 40-100cm

Wanaka

Treble Cone 20-111cm
Cardrona 65-110cm

Queenstown

Coronet Peak 60-150cm
The Remarkables 50-110cm

Snow Report 1 September 2016 - Australia & New Zealand

Its the first day of Spring! Spring means warmer days on the slopes, melt-freeze conditions and - hopefully - the occasional dump of snow to keep things going through the school holiday periods that are coming up on both sides of the Tasman.

Hotham 23.08.16

AUSTRALIA

The torrential rain on Wednesday morning did a lot of damage to the snow cover at the Australian skifields.

Around 30-50mm came pelting down overnight. Lifts have closed at some mountains in this run of warm weather.

This storm ended a good run of days for those of us lucky enough to be up in the mountains at the end of August.

We arrived a few weeks ago during the previous storm that brought 50cm to the Victorian ski resorts over the weekend of the 19-22 August.

The snow was dry and chalky at the beginning of last week following the dump. Very cold nighttime temperatures kept the snow in fantastic nick during the week, when there were no crowds of course!

The Orchard, Hotham 23.08.16

We used the free afternoon lift access at Falls (with a multi-day pass) to check out what had fallen after all the weekenders had returned home. It was still cloudy and snowing, but there was great winter snow and very nice conditions off-piste.

Hotham was skiing beautifully on Tuesday with dry packed powder all the way down the hill. However, runs at The Orchard and the bottom of Blue Ribbon were still marginal, even after the dump. At the same time, the cover at Heavenly was complete and the snow fantastic with the snowmaking guns still going while we did our early laps.

The days turned glorious as the week went on, with nice, crisp nights and classic sunny days with light winds. But not too warm that the snow condition couldn't keep nice overnight.

Falls Creek 25.08.16

This fantastic run of days lasted right up until the weekend, when it started to get really warm on Saturday, continuing into Monday.

The chalky conditions were replaced by melt-freeze on the weekend, which was just as fun if you knew where to go as the runs softened up through the day.

By Monday this week, the runs were starting to get a little patchy down low, but until then Falls had complete cover save for a few dodgy bits lower down in The Maze. Hotham was struggling to keep The Orchard open even before the rain, and Blue Ribbon was marginal already.

Its amazing how much snow there is on the upper slopes at both mountains, with a marked difference as you go below 1600m. Heavenly Valley at Hotham and the great skiing across all of Falls were definitely a highlight though last week!

Unfortunately it looks like raining again into the weekend, with perhaps a few snow showers following.

Snow conditions:

Mt Baw Baw - Snow depth: 0cm No lifts running

Hotham 26.08.16

Mt Buller - . Snow depth: 65-83cm All lifts except for Boggy Creek and Federation

Mt Hotham - . Snow depth: 97-107cm All lifts except for Blue Ribbon, Orchard/Keogh's and Gotcha qhich closed this week.

Falls Creek - . Snow depth: 104-131cm

Perisher - 42 of 47 lifts running at Perisher, North Perisher and four lifts at Smiggins have closed

Thredbo - all 14 lifts are open but patchy snow on many runs.especially lower down.

Selwyn Snowfields - just the one chairlift open now at Selwyn.