Aragonese ski resorts, eager for snow to be able to open

The Constitution long weekend has been marked for the snow sector and ski lovers as the official start of the season in Aragon, although nothing could be further from the truth, which is conditioned by the weather. Despite the snow that has timidly covered the slopes since October, the webcams installed in Formigal-Panticosa and Cerler (Aramón) and Astún-Candanchú, despite the weak snowfall during this morning, show almost bare slopes eager for thickness.

For this reason, the resorts see it as “unlikely” to open for the moment, although they are positive about the forecast of snow for Sunday and Monday despite the fact that the opportunity for the holidays would have already been lost. A similar scenario to that which occurred a year ago, when the only resort that started its activity on the long weekend was the Teruel resort of Valdelinares (which also has no opening date along with Javalambre), while the Pyrenean resorts did so on December 16.

According to the State Meteorological Agency (Aemet), the snow level on Wednesday is around 1,400 metres, although it is expected that the precipitation will be light and that the temperatures will drop slightly. Thus, there could be an accumulation of 25 centimetres on the watershed. On Thursday the level will rise to 2,200-2,500 metres and the degrees will also do so, variables that will remain the same on Friday.

Temperatures are expected to drop again on Saturday, with the altitude set at around 1,900 metres, but it will not be until Sunday and Monday when snow will begin to fall in the Pyrenees. The altitude is expected to be around 
900-700 metres these days , with temperatures that could reach -10 degrees according to the forecast of the meteorological agency, which could vary throughout the week.

THE STATIONS ARE “READY TO OPEN” WAITING FOR SNOWFALL

In all the resorts of the Aragonese Pyrenees they assure that they are “ready to open when the weather permits” although the important thing is to lower temperatures so that the thickness is maintained and to be able to use artificial snow  if necessary.  In the case of the Aramón Group, which presented the season last Friday, they have made an investment of 20 million to produce snow, in a project that will be developed in several phases, the first focused on improving the existing network.

So far, 609 snowblowers have been installed, of which 230 are optimizations and 379 are new. This increases the number of installed areas to 1,680, which is a growth of 28%. All this translates into a total of 78.5 kilometers of snow covered areas with the latest generation of systems.

Astún has confirmed that no new devices have been installed for the start of the season and that they are continuing with the ones from previous years, which “are sufficient” to ensure artificial snow.

SIGNIFICANT THICKNESSES AT THE SUMMITS

Although the snow has not yet reached the ski resorts to start the season, it does cover the high peaks of the Aragonese Pyrenees. As they have warned from the Góriz Refuge, with a snapshot of Monte Perdido, there is “a lot of snow above the 2,700 meter mark”. “This photo is not the product of artificial intelligence, nor of snow cannons, nor of an advertising campaign, but quite the opposite, it only shows the reality that exists in the mountains that surround us,” they have pointed out on their Instagram account.

 

 

 

 

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Una publicación compartida por Refugio de Góriz (@refugiodegoriz)

They have therefore sent a message to travellers “who ask if it is possible to climb the Perdido in slippers due to the heat” and ask for “great caution”. A warning that has also been issued by Montaña Segura, guaranteeing that the snow “continues at altitude” and therefore they ask mountaineers to wear the appropriate equipment.