Thundersnow! A ski trip during the ‘rona

[offshore171]

This week I did something I wasn’t expecting to do this year - a ski trip.

We had a family holiday to Lapland booked for December 2020, but this of course is cancelled.

I had written off any opportunity to hit the snow this year. But then NSW was able to get COVID daily cases down to single digits and the resorts managed to stay operating with some special adaptions for the pandemic.

So how did it all work out?

Surprisingly well. Stay tuned for the write up.

 

[offshore171]

It was just a 3 day trip, but very eventful.

On Tuesday night we got the rare, dramatic and welcome phenomenon: Thundersnow.

This is basically a blizzard system that starts with a massive thunderstorm. In fact it was so big it took out the grid power for about 15 minutes or so.

The next morning there was mayhem on the roads into Perisher.

 

[offshore171]

The blizzard is expected to continue for the next few days, with about a metre of snowfall accumulation.

Snow is forecast down below 1000m elevations.

 

[Denali]

It was just a 3 day trip, but very eventful.

On Tuesday night we got the rare, dramatic and welcome phenomenon: Thundersnow.

This is basically a blizzard system that starts with a massive thunderstorm. In fact it was so big it took out the grid power for about 15 minutes or so.

The next morning there was mayhem on the roads into Perisher.

View attachment 225794

As someone that went to Icleand last year - you can pretty much imagine you are there going by this picture!

And looks like your ski gear is finally living its best life (for Australia)

 

[offshore171]

And looks like your ski gear is finally living its best life (for Australia)

Well spotted! Yes I was fortunate enough to give the gear a spin!

 

[offshore171]

So how are the resorts dealing with Coronavirus?

• They are running at 50% of capacity
• Face coverings are mandatory. This can be pretty much anything like a scarf, turkey neck, balaclava etc.
• Skipasses must be bought in advance, online
• No casual snow activities are allowed (eg: snow play, tobogganing etc)
• On mountain eateries require sign in with contact details
• Chairlifts have reduced seating capacity. 2 on a 4 seater, and 3 on an 8 seater. However members of the same household can use full seating.

All up, I thought they are doing a good job managing this at a difficult time.

 

[offshore171]

We stayed at Sponars, a grand old building about 10 minutes down the hill from Perisher.

This is a half board arrangement, providing a quality breakfast and dinner with your stay.

 

[LadyC]

Glad you are getting to use your ski gear. No joy for us south of the border. I'll just have to wait until I can get to Europe next. I'm interested to hear more about Perisher as I have never been.

 

[offshore171]

Article on Thundersnow:

What is thundersnow and how does it happen?

Thundersnow is a rare and little-known phenomenon that occurs when lightning strikes in storms producing snow. Here's how it happens.

www.abc.net.au

 

[offshore171]

The really big snow storm has begun.

The press is saying it might be a 1 in 15 year snow event.

One-in-15-year snow event hits NSW regions

Snow is set to fall across large swathes of ACT and the NSW Central and Southern Tablelands as...

www.canberratimes.com.au

 

[offshore171]

Getting back to this report now.

Wednesday of last week (19/Aug) was the day of the trip. A fresh blanket of snow had fallen overnight and it came in two waves, which turned out to be significant.

This would be one of the best days skiing I've had in Australia, due to the fresh snow and small crowds due to the reduced capacity.

The first snowfall was the "thunder snow" on Tuesday night that knocked out the power. It then snowed again heavily at around 4am. This was after the grooming machines had left the mountain.

The result was something I don't think I have ever seen - a blanket of untracked powder snow on Perisher's front valley. This slope is normally groomed to within an inch of its life.

First lifts were around 815 and up we went, and cut powder turns right down front valley.

We then started making our way across the resort to Mount Perisher. As it was windy up high, the Chairlifts on Mount P were closed. However the two T-Bars: Eyre and International were going, meaning fantastic powder was on offer IF you could find your way over there without the chairlifts.

The trick was to use the Sun Valley T-Bar to make the connection. Once over there, the mountain was virtually empty and there was untracked snow galore, including some significant wind drifts. It turned out to be a truly epic day.



The snowy scene at the base of Eyre T Bar on Mount Perisher

 

[offshore171]

The total snowfall from that storm cycle was 96cm. While a metre of snow from one storm system wouldn't make the news somewhere like Japan for example, it's very good dump by Australian standards.

This should give the season some legs, well into September, and they've announced they are to release more Sept tickets than previously planned due to the strong conditions.

Perisher release more tickets for 7-11 September

Perisher have released more tickets for 7-11 September, conditions are awesome, get on it quick or miss out.

snowaction.com.au

 

[Assassin]

I was there at the same time and also had some amazing skiing by Australian standards. I am back at the snow now, feeling grateful we can travel in NSW. How was Sponars hotel? I've driven past it many times. Reminds me of the The Overlook(?) in The Shining...

 

[Seat0B]

My hubby skiied at the tail end of the blizzard on Sunday 23 August.

Being a fair-weather skier now, I waited to ski until Monday - and this was the reward. Check out the ice on those trees at the top of Parachute at Guthega. So beautiful it hurts your eyes. We also had given up on skiing again this year. Not feeling too sanguine about our Jan/Feb 2021 trip to Japan at this point in time.

 

[Seat0B]

So how are the resorts dealing with Coronavirus?

• They are running at 50% of capacity
• Face coverings are mandatory. This can be pretty much anything like a scarf, turkey neck, balaclava etc.
• Skipasses must be bought in advance, online
• No casual snow activities are allowed (eg: snow play, tobogganing etc)
• On mountain eateries require sign in with contact details
• Chairlifts have reduced seating capacity. 2 on a 4 seater, and 3 on an 8 seater. However members of the same household can use full seating.

All up, I thought they are doing a good job managing this at a difficult time.

We cracked up at the face coverings! Having an aversion to skin cancers, we often wore face masks especially on good days pre-COVID, and were always being yelled at to take off the mask so they could check the pass photos. Not like that this time! Everyone was being yelled at to "get that mask up over your nose!"

And yes I agree they are managing quite well under the circumstances. I felt quite safe.

For visual amusement - who are these masked people? Confuses the hell out of my phone's FaceID!

 

[offshore171]

View attachment 226553

Just glorious.

 

[Seat0B]

Just glorious.

yes, a source of joy and good for the soul in these times of COVID.

 

[Seat0B]

Reviewing these photos - what a difference a day makes!

 

[offshore171]

As hard is this is to believe with the recent run of glorious weather in Sydney, a late season blizzard system is hitting the mountains at the moment. Started falling yesterday, and tThey are expecting about half a metre of snow over the next few days.

What a great way to cap off a difficult season.

Snow report:

Perisher's Weather and Snow Cams

Check out Perisher's live snow cams and daily snow report to see all the updates from Perisher's four resort areas, weather forecasts and details of skiing and boarding terrain

www.perisher.com.au