Back in the day when I first started doing seasons this would have been a disaster. My mind takes me back to my first season in 1988/89. The only slope to open briefly was Clotes thanks to it being the first slope to benefit from cannons. Nowadays as a result of some serious investment from the Via Lattea, cannons cover most slopes which is an absolute must in these days of climate change and unpredictable snow.

It’s not enough to just have cannons. You have to look after and ‘farm’ the snow too. The team in charge of the Sauze area deserve a special mention for working miracles this season. We’ve seen temperatures range from -29 to +35, we’ve had extraordinary high winds, sun, snow (a little) and rain but despite this we’ve had good skiing all season with all the links remaining open right up until the end. (high winds understandable closing links occasionally).

And so it is because of this that I find myself encouraged and optimistic for the future. If we can ski for 4 months of the year on less than a meter of natural snow then surely people should feel safe booking their winter holidays to Sauze?

We’d all prefer waist deep powder and perfect on piste snow but if this season is towards the lower end of the epic scale then happy days!

Irony is something that isn’t lost on me so after waiting all season for the first big dump of snow I did find myself chuckling quietly to myself Tuesday night as I dug my car out of the snow and set off early for my ferry back to the UK for fear that I wouldn’t be able to get down the mountain if I left it any later.

On the day the lifts shut the heavens opened and we had more snow in 12 hours than we had all season. For those workers that are left behind, Montgenevre and powder beckons, that’s if you can get out of Sauze. I’m not bitter though and as I spent 12 hours in my car crossing France my thoughts never once turned to what the guys were up to, honest.

It’s been another good bunch of workers this season and once again we’ve been spoiled with live music options. The Chaps, formerly known as Beer Pressure were back out along with a new band who after much deliberation called themselves ‘The Pistey Boys’. Both groups provided some very memorable evenings and hopefully both will be entertaining us again next season.

The Big Snow Festival made Sauze it’s home for the first time at the end of March. They brought with them a colourful bunch of party goers all there to indulge themselves in some top music with the mountains as the back drop. Hopefully they’ll make Sauze their established home for the next few years.

A summary of the season wouldn’t be complete without a mention of the new lift layout. The changes that came into play this season seemed to have caused some people much distress. I do not count myself among them.

It’s obvious that something had to be done about the old 2 man Rocce Nera chair lift which takes you out of Sportinia. As funds were not available for a brand new chair lift the only option open to the lift company was to move the Triplex quad. This does mean that Sportinia becomes somewhat of a bottle neck during busy periods and potentially a single point of failure for those needing to get out of Sauze into the wider area.

Having skied all season I can honestly say that this did not cause me any issues. There was the odd occasion during New Year or the February half term when I felt I didn’t want to stand in the queue for Rocce Nera so I simply by passed it and either skied down the new Grand Pista to Jouvenceaux, where there were no queues, or down red 11 to Lago Nero (top of Clotes).

Lago Nero was another new configuration. This was the old Pian della Rocce chair which was basically swung round on its axis to finish just above Sportinia. Because of this change runs like 11, 29 and 2000 became more accessible with a quicker recycle time. It’s important to say that no runs were lost due to this change.

Even at the height of the season when queues were at their worst it still took me less time to get from Sportinia to the top than it did last season. In these hard times I welcome any money spent as a positive sign and who’s to say that’s the end of improvements? There’s talk of further changes and additions coming in the future so watch this space.

I’m conscious that this is fast becoming a novel so I’ll leave it there. It just remains for me to thank everyone who has read my ramblings over the season. Also thank you if you’ve liked and or contributed to the facebook page. I’m already looking forward to next season and hopefully meeting a few more of you around Sauze. Until then enjoy your summer and be warmed by the fact that we only have another 240 days or 345,600 minutes until the start of the 2012/13 season!

After last weeks high temperatures and glorious sunshine it was a relief to see winter return this week. Tuesday brought fresh snow and even brought off piste back in to the equation. We had about 25cm which has helped tremendously. There is still the odd icy patch where the fresh snow has been scraped away but overall the conditions are good.

It’s been cold enough this week for the cannons to operate too adding to the base. This cold front will be with us until the end of the weekend when another warm front is set to move in. Freezing levels are due to be above 2500mts with it peaking at 3300mts on Monday so a warm start to the week for those arriving Sunday.

The warm weather is due to last all next week and then a week on Sunday more snow is forecast. I’d take the promise of snow with a pinch of salt however as forecasts that far ahead tend to change. It’s all a bit up and down at the moment with each week being different to the last. Keeps us on our toes.

That’s about it from sunny Sauze for this week. If your here at the moment, I hope you’re having a great time and if you’re due out this weekend then I hope you’re suitable excited.

On Monday despite these temperatures the slopes were hard and unforgiving if you didn’t have good edges. This was a result of fluctuating temperatures melting the snow by late afternoon and freezing them again during the evening. On a couple of evenings early on in the week they were able to produce some fresh artificial snow which eased the suffering somewhat.

Towards the end of the week the temperature seemed to settle down but unfortunately it chose to settle at the wrong end of the thermometer. Today I’ve seen people walking around in shorts and t-shirts as they decided to call it a day just after lunch. Those that persevered may well have done better hiring out water skis.

Wednesday was the best day this week. Conditions were good high up and the snow allowed you to carve out some nice high speed turns, holding the edge well. Lower down, the runs back into town were the inevitable slush which despite soaking your boots and trousers I do find fun to ski through/in.

It isn’t all doom and gloom though. For one the tan has come on leaps and bounds and my head is now beginning to resemble a malteaser.  More importantly the forecast for next week is indicating not only a change in temperature but also snow. Monday and Tuesday we should be in for a moderate snow fall as a weather system moves in. The temperature thankfully is going to be colder than this week however it seems set to creep up again Thursday and Friday before dropping again over the weekend.

March can be a funny month and as the old saying goes “In like a lamb out like a lion” has been true so many times before with a barmy start to the month only for us to be digging our way out of snow drifts by the end of it. Lets hope the lions roar drowns out the bleating lambs.

The snow yesterday though was fantastic. The warmer weather began to release the pistes from their icy grip and skiing was good all over the mountain. Towards the end of the day the lower slopes showed signs of being a tad soft but over all we had great conditions everywhere. The obvious question is how long can we sustain the higher temperatures before things start getting a little patchy?

Today is very much the same and the warmer air is due to be with us over the weekend and into the beginning of next week. The forecast does have snow coming in at the end of next week and the temperature dropping to seasonal averages but for now lets just enjoy the spring like conditions.

Historically the end of the season has seen some good late snow and as we’re still waiting for the first big dump of this season, I’m confident that powder days are just waiting in the wings ready to make the smiles on peoples faces even bigger than they were yesterday.

Tuesday was Carnevalle in Italy so this week has seen the slopes a little busier than normal. That said the queuing was still fairly mediocre compared to some resorts in France that I’ve been to during the holidays. Monday was probably the worse and I did have one of those days when a couple of runs was enough and an early shower was the order of the day. Next week we should have the mountain to ourselves again.

We have The Big Snow Festival coming out to Sauze on the 25th March for 1 week which should be a great end to the season. We’ve been spoilt this season with great live music from various resident line ups. Yesterday The Pistey Boys played their first mountain gig at Chalet Molino. Blue skies, great snow, sun cream and live music until the sun goes down is a great way to spend the day. If you’re out next week then, weather permitting, they’ll be playing again so keep your eyes out for the posters, Oh and pack high factor sun cream.

Wednesday was a little blustery which meant that the link to Sestriere closed for a few hours in the afternoon but despite that this week has been a great week to be here. It’s half term which means the slopes are a little busier than normal but still queues are fairly non existent.

Moncrons and Tuassieres drag lifts which normally only open for the weekends have been open this week. If you’re reading this in a bar tonight in Sauze then I’d recommend that you head over there tomorrow as the snow is fantastic. The area has no cannons so the snow is all natural which means you don’t get the odd hard/icy patch synonymous with slopes that have a mixture of artificial and natural snow.

The forecast for next week has the temperature remaining higher than previous weeks with the freezing level hovering around 2000mts. There may well be snow Monday although the most we can expect is about 10cm. The wind is due to pick up at the end of the week so if you are in Sauze next week then I’d suggest that you do Sestriere and further afield before Friday as this is currently down for strong winds which could well see a little disruption.

To cap it all off the water supply to the apartment also froze which left me without water for 3 days. Thankfully that has now been sorted so at least I can wash my porridge pan.

After a couple of days when the temperature readout wasn’t preceded with a minus sign we are now returning to baltic conditions. This morning as I wiped the frost off the inside of my window and looked across to the thermometer my head dropped as it read -9, time for porridge.

On the plus side the skiing this week has been fantastic. We had some unexpected snow on Tuesday, which was very welcome as snow always is. This coupled with the warmer temperature made it personally the best day’s skiing thus far this season.

Wednesday early on was marred by the return of high winds that unfortunately closed the link to Sestriere but the skiing around Sauze was that good, who needed Sestriere? On piste conditions were just great and off piste offered it’s self up again to be explored.

So that was the week that was, the forecast has snow again for tonight and also for next Tuesday. The temperature is remaining cold so once again thermals are the order of the day if you’re out here next week. There’s going to some wind for the first half of the week with it being the strongest possible Wednesday/Thursday.

For those that haven’t already seen it I’ve added another video to the sauzeonline vimeo channel taken a few days ago.

For a week now we’ve had a weather system hanging over us, which has brought a far amount of snow with it. The heaviest was on Tuesday when it started to come down really nicely. The old saying though about it being to cold to snow is true in certain respects as the other days have seen very fine snow almost like crystallised dust. Not really what we would ideally like however snow none the less. If the temperature had been slightly warmer then we would have ended up with a lot more, dare I say we might even have had our first big dump of the season.

Please do not think that I’m complaining, conditions at the moment are excellent. The official snow depths given out by the lift company say we have 80cm on the lower slopes and 120cm on the upper slopes. On piste conditions are good although just watch out for the odd hard patch lurking underneath the surface. With temperatures being what they are at the moment this is only to be expected. Off piste has made a welcome return this week however many of the good areas are now all tracked out.

The run from the bottom of the Sportinia chair lift to Jouvenceaux opened today which means that at last I can ski home as opposed to taking the lift down, happy days! Those people that are staying in Jouvenceaux will need to set off from Sportinia down red 11 then take a left turn onto Gran Pista and follow that all the way to Jouvenceaux.

The week ahead looks like it’s going to be clear with the cold temperatures staying with us for at least another 7 days although I don’t think that it’ll be as cold as the week we’ve just had. There might be some wind about Monday and Tuesday but hopefully not too strong. More snow is forecast for the weekend of the 11th February.

By Sunday evening Sauze was well and truly engulfed in cloud and with the temperatures dropping the snow turned very fine. By this morning it had stopped although the clouds have been hanging around all day teasing us with little flurries every now and then.

The forecast does say more snow will fall tomorrow and Thursday so hopefully we’ll end up with an accumulated snowfall of around 100cm, which would be very nice indeed. The wind seems to be behaving it’s self this week, which is good to see. The beginning of next week could see strong winds returning although as this is a week away I’ll keep an eye on that and bring you an update nearer the time.

Despite the good snow on offer today I ended up doing very little skiing. My first fall of the season was fairly innocuous however my right leg twisted and I ended up limping back home for an early bath, typical!

What I did do was very pleasant. It did seem slightly busier today on the slopes but certainly there were no lift queues to speak of. With the temperature looking like it’s going to remain low over the next 10 days those out this week and next week should have good snow conditions.

Before returning for my early bath I did manage to take some photos from today which I’ve added below.

At the start of the week it was reading a chilly -5. This morning when I left it was reading +5 and just now at 16.20 local time it was saying +10. You should take off at least 3 degrees to get near the temperature at the top of the mountain.

So with the colder temperatures at the beginning of the week we had all the cannons firing adding more artificial snow to the mix. As you might expect when the temperature drops the snow gets harder and you start to hear the dreaded word ‘icy’ being banded about in conversation. I will concede and say that good edges would have helped but I still wouldn’t say it was icy.

Today with the higher temperature the snow was a little more forgiving. I skied with 2 guys, one of which was a first week skier the other had a couple more weeks under his belt. We went over to Sestriere in the morning and then headed back to Sauze d’Oulx in the afternoon. Both enjoyed the day and found the conditions to be very good. Not one mention of ice!

I’ve skied pretty much everywhere in the Via Lattea this week thanks to skiing with a group of people that ski fast and drink fast! I’m happy to say that the snow coverage is good despite the fact that we are still waiting for the fist big dump of the season. It’s true to say that the best snow I’ve found is in Montgenevre and Clavier but don’t worry if you coming out to Sauze next week, the skiing is still good.

For the last 10 days we’ve had clear blue skies which is great if you’re here on holiday and a few people have been going home with some nice healthy glows. This morning there were clouds beginning to gather in the direction of the Frejus tunnel and the 3 Valleys. These did eventually make it over to Sauze and for a while we had flat light, which is no good at all if you have your sunny lenses in! They didn’t look too threatening though and by the end of the day the sun had made a return.

There is a system coming in this weekend that may or may not bring snow with it. As always it’s fairly hard to get a general consensus from the different weather websites that I look at. The one that I trust the most is saying snow all day Saturday and then from Monday onwards cold temperatures. If you’re coming out next week bring your thermals.

I’ve added a couple of photos taken by the group I’ve been skiing with this week. Thanks Clive.

Those that have been here this week have experienced clear blue skies with great on piste conditions. The temperature has been high for the time of year making it feel like Spring has already sprung. Fear not though the snow is holding up well with great skiing to be had throughout the Milky Way.

Tuesday I skied in Sestriere with this years resident band “The Pistey Boys”. The snow was good and firm with very good coverage. The mens downhill was superb from top to bottom. Wednesday I skied from Sauze to Clavier. The intention was to ski all the way to France however the group I was with didn’t have the correct pass. Just a word of warning, you can only ski in Montgenevre on the 6 day pass. Anything less and you’ll need to buy an extension.

That didn’t spoil our fun though as the snow in Clavier and on the way over was great. The track back down from the top of Cesana is skiable although I’d recommend taking the lift down. I never like taking lifts down but if you value your skis it is advisable.

Next week the temperature is due to drop, which will mean that the cannons can start firing again. There is no natural stuff forecast until 21st January although as this is 8 days away it’s possible for this to change. Most forecasts that I’ve looked at do point to snow for the latter part of next week so we’ll just keep our fingers crossed.

Some resorts in Austria and France have seen huge amounts of snow with many resorts being cut off or closed. That isn’t any issue here and whilst we’d always like more snow I’m not panicking yet.

Below are pictures taken on Wednesday’s trip to Clavier.