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I hate to tell you, but today has been another stunner – and none of the predicted cloud and snow arrived, leaving us free to cruise around Verbier and enjoy great empty pistes (even through the most notorous of Verbier’s bottlenecks).

Of course these benefits pale into insignificance when weighed against the fact that the flat and resort are sadly Sandy-free at the moment, while he’s off taking his European Mountain Security exam in the aptly named Le Grave.

Still, much as everyone at ES wishes the slightly-lanky-falling-over-machine all the best, we all agree that if he chooses to leave his slightly radioactive trainers somewhere in France, Verbier will not mind in the slightest…

Anyway, here’s a picture of someone standing at the top of Atalas today looking thoughtfull. Bless them.

Blue skies and warmer temperatures on uncrowded slopes have made Verbier the place to be this week. Piste conditions have been great from early in the morning right through the day. Moguls on the main mountain are best attempted in the afternoon when the snow is somewhat softer. Although the main itineraries and Mont Fort have good conditiions all day. Other areas worth trying for those seeking bumps are at Savoleyres on the north side under the 6 man Le Nord lift and under the 4 man Tailley lift.

Conditions for beginners at Les Esserts are very good with the lower temperatures allowing snowmaking to maintain the slopes.The Route Carrefour back from Savoleyres to the main mountain is also open but watch out for bare patches in the last 100m.

The Verbier High Five sponsored by Carlsberg is set to go this Saturday 31st March. Five competitions open to downhill skiers, snowboarders and telemarkers are on the agenda: a giant slalom, a boarder cross, a mogul run, a fun “triathlon” and a parallel slalom to sort out the best of each category. Providing an opportunity to race with champions, the day will finish with a lively après-ski at the resort. Sign-up under www.verbiersportplus.ch

The next couple of day are forecast as a mix of cloud and blue skies with cooler temperatures. The next snow forecast is for around 5cm on Friday and the same again on Saturday.

Perfect pistes and great weather in Verbier it hasn’t been better all season!!! The clouds of earlier in the week have now cleared to give blue skies and fantastic on-piste conditions. Yesterday there was hardly a soul to be seen early morning on Attelas but the perfectly groomed slopes were amazing.

Off-piste was also in great condition. Tortin had bumps in the main fall line but still plenty of powder along the traverse. Col des Gentianes also looked good with the bumps being soft and gentle. further afield on Combatzelline on the other side of Siviez the carving pistes were uncrowded although somewhat icier than those in Verbier. The Vallon D’Arbi and Col des Mines itinerary routes have also been opened up after the recent snowfall – so get out there and enjoy while the cold conditions keep the snow good.

The Verbier Xtreme event went ahead today in great conditions up on the Bec Des Rosses. Crowds were at Col des Gentianes to view the event and later on in the town to see close ups on the main screen. The runs down were awesome – these guys and girls really have some guts and the show was as spectacular as always.

The next couple of day are forecast as cool temperatures of around -5C with some sun and some cloud but no new snow. From Tuesday temperatures are set to rise again with the possibility of a little snow. The next main snowfall is forecast for Friday.

Actually, nothing’s really changed, so it’s no surprise that the weather has stayed the same – still cold, still cloudy and still snowing.

The only variations have been the enthusiasm with which it’s been snowing – a bit or a lot – and the distance you can see in front of you – sometimes it’s a bit, sometimes it’s a bit less…

Which is a shame as I’d planned on filling this blog entry with pictures of our instructor training with Kevin Mocherie (a wise man in the world of skiing, however, Kevin, perhaps it’s time to have a chat with Roddy about upgrading the goggles).

So, instead, here’s a picture of clouds. But the good news is that things look like they’re about to (brace yourselves) change and get sunny.

Just in time for the Holidays, but maybe not soon enough for the Verbier Extreme tomorrow…

Crumbs.

It’s been pretty nippy up there for the last few days, but today it wasn’t sure if it wanted to be spring or winter – so Verbier swung from sunny and beautiful to cloudy and invisible.

Still, we’re getting snow and it’s staying cold – and all the snow cannons are churning out tonnes extra – so Easter should have great conditions on piste even if Verbier has another transformation and goes dead hot like last week.

And this pretty much sums today up – is it murky and sinister or sunny and glorious? Who knows…