How much snow should one expect on the Alpine passes in July
Posted: Fri May 31, 2013 10:05 am
I've planned a hiking itinerary for 2nd and 3rd weeks of July (so early to mid-July) for Mercantour and P. N. delle Alpi Marittime. My main concern is about the mountain passes I'd have to cross, whether they may still have so much snow to make walking conditions dangerous.
We will have trekking poles, but no crampons or ice axes, nor do we have any experience in (winter) climbing.
I did a similar trip in Vanoise N.P. 2 years ago, in 1st and 2nd weeks of July, and only saw a few patches of snow on level ground that presented no danger.
But I'm concerned after reading the news articles that perhaps with the late spring the conditions will be worse this year.
How can I find that out?
I've looked at sites like Meteo France but they don't really provide much useful information about the passes, it is all mostly about the ski stations.
Which is the website that the refuges use to print out weather forecasts that they display? I used to know it, but have forgotten the name.
By the time I find out from the refuge proprietor that a pass is closed, it may be too late to find a good alternative route. If I knew beforehand that there will be snow, I may even have time to buy crampons or something (not sure what good it would do without any experience with them).
Am I being paranoid for no reason?
Are there any rules of thumb as to what's safe to cross and what's not?
The itinerary is:
Day 1 - St Etienne de Tinnee to R. de Vens
Day 2 - R. de Vens to R. de Rabuons
Day 3 - R de Rabuons to Pas de Colle Longue (2533m) to R. de Laus
Day 4 - R. de Laus to Tesina pass to Sant'Anna di Vinadio
Day 5 - Sant'Anna di Vinadio to Colle della Lombarda (2351m) to Bassa del Druos (2628m) to R. Questa
Day 6 - R. Questa to R. Remandino
Day 7 - R. Remandino to Colle di Brocan (2892m) to R. Soria-Elena
Day 8 - R. Soria Elena to Col de Fenestre (2474m) to R. la Madone de Fenestre
Day 9 - R. la Madone de Fenestre to R. de Nice (maybe hike up Mont Clapier (3045m) if time and conditions permit)
Day 10 - R. de Nice to R. des Merveilles
Day 11 - R. des Merveilles to St Dalmas de Tende
As you can see, it goes to 2.5km a few times, and up to 2.9km once.
Any other comments or advice you have would be appreciated.
P.S. Sorry if this is more of a hiking/trekking question, not a climbing/mountaineering one, but I posted on some other forums and didn't get any responses - I think folks here will be more knowledgeable, especially whether I'm overly concerned about the dangers or not.
We will have trekking poles, but no crampons or ice axes, nor do we have any experience in (winter) climbing.
I did a similar trip in Vanoise N.P. 2 years ago, in 1st and 2nd weeks of July, and only saw a few patches of snow on level ground that presented no danger.
But I'm concerned after reading the news articles that perhaps with the late spring the conditions will be worse this year.
How can I find that out?
I've looked at sites like Meteo France but they don't really provide much useful information about the passes, it is all mostly about the ski stations.
Which is the website that the refuges use to print out weather forecasts that they display? I used to know it, but have forgotten the name.
By the time I find out from the refuge proprietor that a pass is closed, it may be too late to find a good alternative route. If I knew beforehand that there will be snow, I may even have time to buy crampons or something (not sure what good it would do without any experience with them).
Am I being paranoid for no reason?
Are there any rules of thumb as to what's safe to cross and what's not?
The itinerary is:
Day 1 - St Etienne de Tinnee to R. de Vens
Day 2 - R. de Vens to R. de Rabuons
Day 3 - R de Rabuons to Pas de Colle Longue (2533m) to R. de Laus
Day 4 - R. de Laus to Tesina pass to Sant'Anna di Vinadio
Day 5 - Sant'Anna di Vinadio to Colle della Lombarda (2351m) to Bassa del Druos (2628m) to R. Questa
Day 6 - R. Questa to R. Remandino
Day 7 - R. Remandino to Colle di Brocan (2892m) to R. Soria-Elena
Day 8 - R. Soria Elena to Col de Fenestre (2474m) to R. la Madone de Fenestre
Day 9 - R. la Madone de Fenestre to R. de Nice (maybe hike up Mont Clapier (3045m) if time and conditions permit)
Day 10 - R. de Nice to R. des Merveilles
Day 11 - R. des Merveilles to St Dalmas de Tende
As you can see, it goes to 2.5km a few times, and up to 2.9km once.
Any other comments or advice you have would be appreciated.
P.S. Sorry if this is more of a hiking/trekking question, not a climbing/mountaineering one, but I posted on some other forums and didn't get any responses - I think folks here will be more knowledgeable, especially whether I'm overly concerned about the dangers or not.