Christmas looks outstanding for visitors to the Tirol

And you could really extend that to almost all alpine regions in Europe, the early winter 08/09 has been quite outstanding. Here around Innsbruck the early glacier skiing was incredible, with powder skiing as early as 5^th October on the Stubai Glacier. The Pitztal Glacier also had great powder conditions but one thing was notable – the local mountains had very little snow until November, then we had a week or so of low clouds and snow across all the mountains. Since then we have had almost continual cold and periods of snow. Last week saw the arrival of the Foehn wind, with warm temperatures and ionised air from Italy. Whilst temperatures meant that snow melted in lower resorts, the snow on the mountains compacted and as usual, the Foehn broke to release snow over the Austrian Alps. Snow is forecast for the entire weekend around Innsbruck and whilst the visibility might be poor in the mountains, those visiting over Christmas will be treated to outstanding snow conditions. Off to a very local resort tomorrow, Gotzens, my home village for the resort opening and a ‘Big Air Bag’ show.

The latest from weather man flo from Nordpark / Seegrube, Innsbruck – serious steeps and the hangout for the locals of the north of the city.