|
Mar 2017
1:28pm, 15 Mar 2017
12,071 posts
|
Angus Clydesdale
No it was pretty horrible. We dropped the kids then took the bus down to Le Lac to the main piste office to find out what was opening & when. They told us the safest, most protected area was in front of our hotel and would be opening first. We took the bus back up the road (only 5 mins) and sure enough the one lift was open when we got back. We decided, based on our mountain experience and a gut feeling, that we'd go back to the hotel and have coffee and see about taking the kids out later on which was when we saw the emergency vehicles arriving.
Fortunately our daughter was just getting off the lift at the top so they skied down past it and got dropped at the car park for ski school admin to collect and he was nearly at the bottom about to go again so met them at the car park. Within 10 mins we had a phone call to say they were safe so it was pretty swift. When I uploaded his garmin trace on Monday he missed it by minutes!!
Just goes to show that although there's a road up there and lots of mechanical uplift, nature is a powerful force and can't be completely predicted.
Fortunately no-one was hurt or worse.
|
|
Mar 2017
3:36pm, 15 Mar 2017
17,877 posts
|
Meglet
Crikey! Thank goodness everyone was ok.
How did they know there was nobody buried? They can track who has got on the lift with the lift passes, but there's no tracking for people coming off. Did they ask people to report in anywhere?
|
|
Mar 2017
8:49pm, 15 Mar 2017
12,075 posts
|
Angus Clydesdale
The tour operators and hotels were quizzed and sent out text messages. The resort emergency plan requires all ski instructors and capable locals to report to the ski patrol with avalanche probes and shovels and trackers if they have them. There were hundreds of them up the hill working the drift for over an hour. I suppose eventually someone makes a decision.
They were lucky in that it was only the tail end / edge of the avalanche that hit the piste.
|
|
Mar 2017
10:40am, 26 Mar 2017
1,643 posts
|
mole_thing
A week of high season conditions in Geilo and just like the last time we came about 12 years ago, there was hardly anyone else there. We often had whole ski runs or lifts to ourselves.
Sadly Geilo is not managing to defy financial gravity and the ski area has contracted slightly since our last visit. Two of the three chair lifts in the larger and more interesting area are now out of use and a couple of runs have closed.
The hotel was pleasant enough, but seemed to have a small maintenance backlog, an impression reinforced when a fortunately non residential part of it collapsed with a loud crash one evening.
If you want wide open spaces with no one else around, Geilo is the place to ski.
|
|
Oct 2017
2:14pm, 13 Oct 2017
12,632 posts
|
Angus Clydesdale
Anyone have any experience of Sestriere / the Milky Way area in the Italian Alps?
|
|
Oct 2017
3:23pm, 13 Oct 2017
29,119 posts
|
alpenrose
I went to Sestriere many years ago. It was a lovely ski area. I don't know if it's changed but my opinion during the week was that they closed a few of the links off during the week but miraculously opened them at the weekend when all the Milanese came up for their weekends. Also links up to a few French resorts.
|
|
Oct 2017
8:03pm, 16 Oct 2017
12,642 posts
|
Angus Clydesdale
Thanks AR. Sestriere it is. Booked it last night. 
|
|
Nov 2017
8:22am, 6 Nov 2017
29,571 posts
|
alpenrose
It's snowing in St Anton this morning.
|
|
Nov 2017
9:30am, 6 Nov 2017
6,495 posts
|
Jambomo
I noticed this thread and thought I could maybe ask some advice. OH and I were thinking that we'd like to go somewhere and learn to do cross-country skiing. Neither of us can ski at all.
Do any of you know somewhere that is good for beginners to learn cross-country?
Thanks all.
|
|
Nov 2017
9:43am, 6 Nov 2017
29,577 posts
|
alpenrose
I've heard that Seefeld in Austria is rather lovely for cross country skiing, a lovely place as well.
|
