zein al-abdeen
19th December 2006, 21:44
Skiers Wondering When Winter Will Come
Unseasonably warm weather in Europe's Alps has left skiers and snowboarders unable to scratch their winter itch. Meanwhile, the winter tourism industry is suffering, and the Swiss ski team has left for Canada in search of whiter pastures.
The only thing winter sports enthusiasts are exercising this year is their patience. Just one week before Christmas, the usually reliable blanket of snow that buries Europe's famous Alps in December has yet to appear. Skiiers, as a result have so far had to stay home. And not just the amateurs. Balmy temperatures have forced the cancellation of World Cup ski races at some of Europe's most prized slopes, like France's Val d'Isere and Switzerland's St. Moritz.
The German ski industry, with many of its ski areas in Bavaria making due with Alpine foothills, has perhaps been hit the hardest by the lack of snow. Almost none of the southern German slopes have enough white stuff to open the lifts. Even Germany's highest peak, the Zugspitze, only has a paltry 58 centimeters (23 inches) of snow. Snow cannons had even been useless until this week -- finally temperatures in the mountains are cold enough that artificial snow won't disappear as fast as it is produced.
According to a recent European climate study, winter sports lovers are suffering from the warmest Alpine temperatures in some 1,300 years. The unseasonable temperatures have forced ski resorts to offer hiking holidays and bears to seek out new, colder hideaways for their winter hibernation.
The Milan newspaper Corriere della Sera reported over the weekend that from Piemont to Venice, "only 50 percent of the slopes are skiable." Some Italian ski slope and cable car operators have asked the government to declare a state of emergency and compensate them for their lost business. Evidently, not many ski bums were keen to trade in their snowboards for hiking boots....
the full story from the der spiegel:
http://www.spiegel.de/international/0,1518,455226,00.html
Unseasonably warm weather in Europe's Alps has left skiers and snowboarders unable to scratch their winter itch. Meanwhile, the winter tourism industry is suffering, and the Swiss ski team has left for Canada in search of whiter pastures.
The only thing winter sports enthusiasts are exercising this year is their patience. Just one week before Christmas, the usually reliable blanket of snow that buries Europe's famous Alps in December has yet to appear. Skiiers, as a result have so far had to stay home. And not just the amateurs. Balmy temperatures have forced the cancellation of World Cup ski races at some of Europe's most prized slopes, like France's Val d'Isere and Switzerland's St. Moritz.
The German ski industry, with many of its ski areas in Bavaria making due with Alpine foothills, has perhaps been hit the hardest by the lack of snow. Almost none of the southern German slopes have enough white stuff to open the lifts. Even Germany's highest peak, the Zugspitze, only has a paltry 58 centimeters (23 inches) of snow. Snow cannons had even been useless until this week -- finally temperatures in the mountains are cold enough that artificial snow won't disappear as fast as it is produced.
According to a recent European climate study, winter sports lovers are suffering from the warmest Alpine temperatures in some 1,300 years. The unseasonable temperatures have forced ski resorts to offer hiking holidays and bears to seek out new, colder hideaways for their winter hibernation.
The Milan newspaper Corriere della Sera reported over the weekend that from Piemont to Venice, "only 50 percent of the slopes are skiable." Some Italian ski slope and cable car operators have asked the government to declare a state of emergency and compensate them for their lost business. Evidently, not many ski bums were keen to trade in their snowboards for hiking boots....
the full story from the der spiegel:
http://www.spiegel.de/international/0,1518,455226,00.html