Grand Paradiso and Aletsch Ski Touring


It has been 2 weeks since my last update. Disappearing into the mountains for 2 weeks doesn't help the updates...

The first trip, in the Italian, Aosta Valley, was in the Grand Paradiso (small shots ) National Park. The second trip was in the Aletsch area , in the Swiss Bernese Alps. (small size ) This area is so amazing, with its huge glaciers and 4000 meter peaks.

Spring seems to be here now. It was unseasonably cold through the last days of March. But it has warmed to normal Spring temps now. I keep looking for the mega dump that will put a thick coat on our glaciers. We will need it, if we have a nice, warm summer like last, to cover those crevasses.

We rode down the Salina Glacier yesterday. That was my first time there this year. This little glacier has changed the most, of all the glaciers I have been on this year. It is a bit shorter, but its volume has decreased substantially. Near the mouth, I felt we were standing, easily 8 meters lower. With a width of a couple hundred meters and a length of a few kms, that represents a lot of ice turned to water...

It snowed 30 cm in Verbier last night! That's a big dump for us here, this year... The forecast calls for cold and unsettled weather for the next few days. Wouldn't it be nice to see these glaciers fill with snow this month of April? They would love that thick blanket of white to protect them from the coming heat of summer.

Posted: Wed - April 7, 2004 at 07:31 AM        

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