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Snow then sun on the deep slopes

Rob Sharpe, Thursday September 13, 2012 - 16:13 EST

Rain was tending to snow across the Alps this morning, meaning that fresh snow will be ready for the mostly sunny weekend.

The good news just keeps on coming for Australian skiiers and snow boarders. The ski fields are enjoying the best early spring snow depths in over a decade, with even more powder to fall before the weekend.

A cold front reached the Alps overnight, bringing areas of rain across the resorts. Snow gradually started falling further down mountains this morning with a few centimetres falling in Perisher Valley (1700 metres) before midday.

During the afternoon and into Friday morning more snow is likely to fall across the Alps down to around 1200 metres. There should be an extra 5-10cm for most resorts. This snow will be well-timed for the weekend rush to the slopes with the sun taking over from Friday to Sunday.

After a run of weeks hosting snow-bearing cold fronts, snow depth managed to reach its highest level of the season so far on Sunday 9th. The depth at Spencers Creek in New South Wales measured just over 215 centimetres, the deepest for this time of year since 2000.

Almost all of the snow-bearing fronts have arrived mid week, leading to wonderful skiing conditions for most weekends. This has meant that for regular weekend skiers this has been one of the best seasons in memory.

- Weatherzone

© Weatherzone 2012