jasoncapecod
Well-known member
NICE...he had a lot more snow...
Sierra Nevada, Spain: 12/31/14
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It's decent-sized for being so close to the Mediterranean, 17 miles as the crow flies.
jasoncapecod
Well-known member
here's a couple of pics from my trip...
Fraser mentions:
Open Snow claims that they received in the low 300s this season, which is quite a bit for its very southern location.
Open Snow claims that they received in the low 300s this season, which is quite a bit for its very southern location.
Centimetres I assume?
OpenSnow is based in Boulder, CO. so inches. Given that it's in Europe, they disclaimer it as not being a perfectly accurate reading but regardless, it sounds like they got a good amount of snow!
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Wow. Colorado eat your heart out.
ChrisC
Well-known member
Yes. A friend has a family home near Malaga, Spain (Mijas), and has been hiking the coastal mountains, which are incredibly lush this year due to all the rainfall.
He did go up to Sierra Nevada a week or so ago for some 'non-serious' novelty skiing. Late April looked like mid-winter.
I previously visited in late October when an unusual early storm had covered Sierra Nevada with snow, which was visible on a day trip to Granada. It was also possible to see the mountains of Morocco across the Mediterranean from Mijas; specifically, the Rif Mountains (elevation 8,000 ft). These are not part of the more well-known Atlas Mountain chain.
Skiing in the Pyrenees is also something to consider, especially some of the Spanish resorts like Baqueira Beret (quite large). Some of my UK friends took a super cheap trip to Andorra this Spring --> great snow this year, and low costs.
He did go up to Sierra Nevada a week or so ago for some 'non-serious' novelty skiing. Late April looked like mid-winter.
I previously visited in late October when an unusual early storm had covered Sierra Nevada with snow, which was visible on a day trip to Granada. It was also possible to see the mountains of Morocco across the Mediterranean from Mijas; specifically, the Rif Mountains (elevation 8,000 ft). These are not part of the more well-known Atlas Mountain chain.
Skiing in the Pyrenees is also something to consider, especially some of the Spanish resorts like Baqueira Beret (quite large). Some of my UK friends took a super cheap trip to Andorra this Spring --> great snow this year, and low costs.
Indy Pass currently includes Baqueira Beret and it would be really smart for them to partner with many of the other indie joints in that range (which is virtually all of them).
At some point, I'll try for a third time to go to the Pyrenees after booking and cancelling in 2016 and 2019.
ChrisC
Well-known member
The Pyrenees would definitely be fun to try; I have seen some friends combine Barcelona with Spanish/Andorran ski areas.
However, I have sworn off adding additional European Mountain bucket list destinations, like the Pyrenees and the Norwegian Alps. Rather get to New Zealand, more of the Alps, more of British Columbia, and possibly Southern Chile or Australia.
I could not be bothered skiing in northern Finland, despite being work-based in Helsinki for weeks, even though it has some larger mountains (no daylight/lots of night-skiing) and Northern Lights. Scandinavia is simply expensive ("Switzerland Prices" and I think a poor value for Europe, especially skiing), and I saw the Northern Lights from an Alaska flight illuminating Denali. Unlike some, I have no desire to see/chase most things in astronomy unless they're right in front of me. L:evi Finland is still a flight (train too long), and once you are on a plane, why not fly to Zurich, Geneva, etc?
However, I have sworn off adding additional European Mountain bucket list destinations, like the Pyrenees and the Norwegian Alps. Rather get to New Zealand, more of the Alps, more of British Columbia, and possibly Southern Chile or Australia.
I could not be bothered skiing in northern Finland, despite being work-based in Helsinki for weeks, even though it has some larger mountains (no daylight/lots of night-skiing) and Northern Lights. Scandinavia is simply expensive ("Switzerland Prices" and I think a poor value for Europe, especially skiing), and I saw the Northern Lights from an Alaska flight illuminating Denali. Unlike some, I have no desire to see/chase most things in astronomy unless they're right in front of me. L:evi Finland is still a flight (train too long), and once you are on a plane, why not fly to Zurich, Geneva, etc?
Total solar eclipses are the conspicuous exception to that generalization. We rarely travel beyond drive distance from home for other astronomical events though we are well informed about them from SEML. That does allow me to see some of them If incorporated into a trip I'm doing mainly for other reasons. Best example was when I wanted to take a Mediterranean cruise in spring 2004. I chose the week containing the Transit of Venus, which come in pairs 8 years apart but separated by over a century. The later one in 2012 was visible from SoCal, and Liz visited for that and the annular eclipse at Lake Powell 3 weeks earlier.
I do not believe Northern Lights are worth a dedicated trip, but the March 2015 Iceland tourist trip that included an eclipse flight also had a couple of evenings with aurora viewings. You might see them on Alaska or Iceland heliski trips too.
We are tempted some by the Pyrenees, and will be there a couple of days in conjunction with our Spain trip this summer. But the Pyrenees have high volatility of snowfall, and the distance to the Alps if you have to make a last minute change means changing your flights due to distances, as James had to do.