- The entire Vosges ski area was closed at the start of the week. The reason ? Lack of snow.
"Since 1988, only eight winters have been so little snowed at this stage of the year," said a representative of Météo-France.
- The difficulties are likely to continue. Snowfall is not expected in the coming days…
Skiing in the Vosges? Hard to practice this season. The entire ski area of the massif was closed at the start of the week, and if a few slopes were able to reopen on Wednesday and Thursday, the excessively mild temperatures are a headache for professionals in the sector.
The Grand Est experienced only two brief snowy episodes this winter, one in mid-November and another in mid-December. Since then, the Vosges have only received occasional small snowfalls and most of the ski areas in the region have been closed for weeks.
Very mild temperatures
"Since 1988, only eight winters have been so snow-free at this stage of the year," said Bruno Vermot-Desroches, director of the Météo-France center in Besançon. It is based on readings taken at the Markstein station, which rises to 1,265 meters. “On average, at a resort like the Markstein, the duration of snow cover is between 80 and 90 days per winter. But for the moment it hasn't even been 10 days… ”, underlines the expert.
The temperatures, particularly mild for the season, are largely responsible for these poor snow conditions, and the few tracks still passable last week had to be closed after the rains fell last weekend.
"The weather is bad"
"This year, the mild temperatures are particularly remarkable", also underlines Jérôme Lartisant, assistant to the forecast service of Météo-France Nord-Est. "The gentle wind melts the snow and if there is precipitation, it is in the form of rain, or else snow but which does not hold," he continues. And the temperatures not cold enough do not allow the use of snow cannons either.
"The weather is bad," says Nicolas Claudel, director of the La Bresse-Hohneck station. "The last time we had such a difficult winter was during the 2006-2007 season," he recalls.
Some brief reopenings
The small layer that fell on Tuesday evening, however, allowed some stations to reopen runways on Wednesday and Thursday, but the difficulties are likely to continue. "In the coming days, we are not expecting significant snowfall and the weather will be rather mild", anticipates Jérôme Lartisant.
"The variability in the level of snow cover is natural, but it is the frequency of these little snowy winters that is likely to increase if the temperatures remain as mild", concludes Bruno Vermot-Desroches.
Planet
Vosges: An association is indignant at the transport of snow by truck from a ski resort
Strasbourg
Alsace: The bet of nature sports to stimulate tourism
- Planet
- Lorraine
- weather
- Weather
- Hobbies
- Ski