Preseason Powder Skiing in Chamonix (week 51)

First out of the Chamonix ski systems to open up was Grands Montets on Saturday the 5th of December. Thanks to the fist heavy snowfall in Chamonix the days before we could ski powder in the big Lavancher bowl right from the start. Still you need to ski carefully since the slopes of Grands Montets consists of rough moraine that needs a good snow-base to cover all the big blocks.

Next lift system to open, 30min from Chamonix town, was Courmayeur. It lacks a bit of snow in the off-piste due to its lower altitude, but all the pistes are open and the slopes are well groomed.

Skiing Glacier de Toule, Helbronner

The first real powder skiing experience this year we got the weekend after on the Punta Helbronner on the south side of the Mont Blanc Massif. On the 14th of December we skied 20cm of light powder on top of a soft base, and we were the only ones on the whole mountain that morning! Immense crevasses are still wide open, but at least they are easy to spot, and the skiable area on Glacier de Toule are massive.

South face of Aiguille d'Entreve

The next day we decided to make a small hike from Punta Helbronner to gain some hight and ski the steep south face of Aiguille d’Entreve before joining Glacier de Toule. Me, Wolfgang, Jimmy Halvardsson and Kaj Zackrisson, got to ski the face in perfect conditions. See the photo gallery from Skiing Souht Face of Aig d’Entreve. The tour is a great combination of ski touring and ski mountaineering with a challenging steep skiing descent. After you also get to ski the whole Glacier de Toule and you finish in time for a delicious pasta at the Bar de Toule.

Climbing up Aiguille d'Entreve

Thanks to the cold temperatures, the south facing glaciers at the Helbronner stayed powdery all afternoon, so we really got two full days of skiing. From the Col d’Entreve, looking out over the Aosta Valley it is also possible to traverse right into the big bowl right of the shoulder we skied. Jimmy tried this the day after and as expected he found it in perfect powder conditions.

Skiing south sholder of Aiguille d'Entreve

So we can state that the winter has arrived to the Alps and in Chamonix the off-piste powder skiing is full on!