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Excellent snow conditions across Les Arcs this week

The pistes are riding beautifully & there’s sunshine on the way

featured in Snow report Author Sam Birch, Les Arcs Reporter Updated

A week of serious snowfall has left us with stunning conditions for skiing. The pistes have a decent top-layer of soft snow, overall snow depth has increased considerably and there is still a lot of un-tracked off-piste within easy reach of the main runs.

Having dumped for over two days, the snow stopped falling late on Wednesday afternoon, leaving deep powder everywhere. Since then it has remained cloudy with only sporadic bursts of sunshine. Overall visibility has improved significantly and, combined with the reopening of most of the lifts, this has meant all of the resort villages are much easier to access. With Friday and Saturday forecast to be “bluebird” clear skies and sunny, you can expect a truly lovely time wherever you go.

bumps in the snowpark in les arcs

Snow Conditions

Due to the addition of over a metre of snow in a 48 hour period, the conditions underfoot are exceptionally good. A couple of days’ traffic has flattened out some of the lumpier sections and improved visibility is making avoiding unexpected bumps a lot easier.

Some of the steeper runs have become moguled, although these are generally soft and playful, and a few of the quicker runs are a little “choppy,” due to the fresh snow. One of the best things about the current situation is that you can find almost any type of snow condition depending upon where you look.

a piste in les arcs

Temperatures have risen, pushing the freezing level above 2000 metres in the afternoon. This is making even the on-piste conditions fairly soft as the day progresses. Some of the runs can feel a little “sticky” around resort level, which is more noticeable on flatter pistes (normally blue runs such as Belvedere and Plan Bois).

snow in les arcs

Lifts and Pistes

The avalanche risk is still quite high in some sectors and so, despite almost all of the pistes being open, there are a notable few that have remained closed. The top of the Plan blue run, from the Col des Frettes, is closed although the Lac red run is a comparable alternative (it is actually a touch wider and only very slightly steeper).

Varet reopened on Thursday and immediately became very busy. Unfortunately, the Aiguille Rouge gondola which is normally accessible thereafter, has still has not opened. I imagine it will resume normal service in the not-too-distant future though. Otherwise, you can ride most pistes and there is great snow coverage everywhere: the very recent dump has seen overall depth rise to 300cm at the highest altitude, and nearly 150cm at Arc 1600.

a snowboarder in thin snow

Best Runs

The snow is good everywhere, so the best run depends upon your preferred type of ride. If you are looking for speed, there’s plenty to be found on Belette (red), although it is still a little bouncy in places so difficult to take completely “flat out.” Towards the bottom, the snow has begun to “catch” a little scrubbing the pace off regardless.

Cachette is similar. It is well groomed and covered, but there are choppy sections and the edges are pretty deep in places. The accessible part of Arandelières is something of a mixed bag, but pick the right line and you can really get some pace up. Towards Peisey-Vallandry speed-freaks should also try out Grive (blue) and Ours (red).

mogul field in les arcs

If you want some funky moguls to help you “get your turn on,” they seem to have appeared in lots of unlikely places. The second half of Vagere (red) and the expanse of off-piste running from the Traversée intersection down to Arc 1800 has become very mogul-y, although the off-piste stuff has begun to harden up a little. Tuffes (red) and the adjacent off-piste has begun to form moguls, although much of the off-piste in that sector is far from exhausted. The Ours “natur” run from the Arpette peak has lots of moguls on it and, due to its technical demands, is much less busy.

Overall, the conditions are excellent and it should not be too difficult to find the type of snow you want. With the weather set fair, it is a good time to go exploring. Bon ski!

Location

Map of the surrounding area