Summer skiing need not be exclusively for fanatical skiers who can't wait six months for their next alpine fix. Keen skiers, who can’t afford the journey to the southern hemisphere for winter conditions, can enjoy affordable skiing during summer holidays in Europe or North America.
Glacier skiing can be a fun way to combine active recreation — skiing or snowboarding, relaxing on restaurant terraces, basking in spectacular alpine views, and cooling down with the mountain breeze from the summer heat.
Here is an overview of July skiing locations and highlights.
Summer Glacier Skiing in North America
Canada's Whistler Blackcomb Resort, located north of Vancouver, offers the most popular and extensive summertime skiing opportunities in North America. Summer ski camps with coaching from former Olympic athletes are a highlight of services offered.
Mammoth Mountain ends its season at the start of the 2010 summer with the intention to remain open daily through the July 4 weekend.
Timberline Lodge on Oregon's Mount Hood is offering the only lift-served skiing and riding in the U.S. all summer long. Terrain on the Palmer Snowfield is for advanced intermediates and above, and is further limited by the number of race camps scheduled to be held there. Timberline keeps at least one lane open for use by the general public.
European Ski Resorts Offering Summer Glacier Skiing
There are eight Austrian summer ski resorts open. The most well known of these include Hintertux — this glacier in the Tyrol region of Austria rises to 3250 metres and provides year-round skiing, also Kaprun, Stubai and Solden.
Swiss summer ski resorts include: Les Diableret, Saas-Fee and the nearby Zermatt. A summer ski pass can be used in both Saas Fee and Zermatt.
France offers summer glacier skiing at Les Deux Alpes and the interlinked resorts of Tignes and Val d’Isere.
Italy opens its lifts on the glaciers of Cervinia and Passo Tonale (Presna Glacier).
Skiing in July in the Southern Hemisphere
In terms of ski seasons, June to September is the southern equivalent to December through March.
New Zealand has ski areas dotted across the North and South Islands catering to all skiing tastes and abilities. Look at the following comparative list which provides up to date details on pricing, terrain difficulty and the number of lifts for New Zealand’s ski fields.
The Queen’s (Queen Elizabeth II) Birthday weekend, a moveable feast that occurs on the second Monday in June marks Australia’s ski season opening.
Though better known for its desert climate and landscape, Australia was a pioneer of modern recreational snow skiing which began at the gold rush town of Kiandra, NSW as early as the 1860s. There is extensive skiable terrain in the South Eastern States (Victoria and NSW) between elevations of around 1,250 m to 2,200 m with several well-developed ski resorts, including Thredbo, Perisher and Mount Buller.
Thredbo is located in Kosciuszko National Park, a self-contained resort at the base of the country’s highest mountain with the largest snow-making facilities in the southern hemisphere, a recently expanded terrain park, and some of the country’s longest, highest, and most challenging terrain.
Ski South America
Skiing in South America can be experienced in Chile, Argentina and Bolivia.
The ski season in South America typically runs from mid-June to October.
Chacaltaya is the only ski resort in Bolivia and, with a base of 5,200 metres (just over 17,000 feet), it has the distinction of being the highest ski resort in the world. Uncharacteristically for the southern hemisphere, the resort runs from November to April.
In Argentina, the best skiing is around Bariloche and at the resorts of Las Leñas and Los Penitentes.
Chile, famous for the Andean Cordillera running down its eastern border with Argentina has numerous large resorts appealing to varied skiing and snow holiday expectations. Portillo, a two-hour drive from the capital, Santiago, has a laid-back atmosphere and is known for its backcountry terrain. A popular choice for off-piste fans is a Ski Arpa and Portillo package that includes three days at Chile’s only cat-skiing resort. Chapa Verde's popular with families, due to modern facilities, decent ski schools and a good range of pistes while the ski resort of Termas de Chillan boasts the best board park and longest slope in Chile. Valle Nevado, El Colorado-Farellones and La Parva are only 50 km (31 miles) from the capital Santiago. You can purchase a pass to cover all three resorts offering a large selection of runs, seemingly limitless off-piste and plenty of on-mountain accommodation ranging from alpine rustic to glamorous.
A southern hemisphere skiing experience, in addition to giving the opportunity to work on your turns has a cultural element to a holiday that may well prove to be the highlight. For those planning on glacier skiing in Europe or North America, expect to share the slopes with recreational skiers and snowboarders, national ski teams training off-season and alpine climbers.
