Around this time every year, it’s the same old story…you’re standing around in the pub discussing the best places to go skiing for the season, and suddenly you find yourself in a world of confusion. Someone chimes in with tales of the El Niño effect and the fact that Whistler has had it’s deepest ealry season snowfalls for over a decade, and then this is promptly shot down by another of your know-it-all mates who lets you in on the fact that British Columbia is subject to random rainfalls that can turn even the best snowcover into an ice-rink…WTF?

We figure that the only way to tell what it’s like in resort is to either go there, or ask someone… in resort (which let’s face it is probably more realistic).  Here at SkiUnion we are going to be bringing you regular updates from various locations around the Alps (and where possible further afield) from people on the ground, complete with photos and brief summaries of conditions. This way you can check your weather charts, compare them with our updates and then go down the pub and put all your mates straight.

Davos/Klosters (14-17th December’09)

To kick things off this winter, our focus (SkiUnion Ed’s Jamie Cameron and Pally Learmond) has turned to Europe where we headed to Davos/Klosters in Eastern Switzerland…and we’re happy to report that things are looking up. Not all the runs are open here, but the majority of the Jakobshorn and Parsenn areas are in full operation, with the rest of the mounains following suit next week. Snow-wise, there is a reasonable base with a 30cm covering of champagne powder (the freezing temperatures have sucked the moisture out of the snow too, keeping it really fresh) and as a result face shots aren’t too rare.

Incidentally when we say reasonable base, do not take this to mean that you can start hucking cliffs left right and centre, there are still a few snaggy little rocks here and there, and it hasn’t quite got to the point where you can open up with complete confidence.

Meanwhile on the freestyle front, the shapers are frantically shifting snow in town to get the halfpipe ready for the O’Neill Evolution snowboard contest, so come Christmas there will probably be something to practice your tricks on. Hopefully the few shots we got will tell enough of the story. Conditions across the Graubunden region are similar according to everyone we’ve spoken to. We’ll hit you up with more reports from various locations soon.

More Info, visit www.davosklosters.ch