We have had nearly 2 metres snow in the last week. The snow was so heavy that skiing lifts were stopped, the train has been terminating at Chamonix train station and not going onwards to Argentiere. Roads were blocked past our Chamonix chalet and snow announcements released.

Compare this to a few winter seasons past, with the incredibly mild January weather conditions, mud appearing on mountainsides, and admonitions that climate change would mean the finish of snowboarding in the European Alps. Indeed the report from 2006 warned that global warming would make skiing holidays too pricey for a lot of snowboarders, with one third of resorts becoming insolvent with the melting of glaciers. Glaciologists say that it’s impossible to assign the yearly deviations in the weather patterns to the outcomes of climate change.

We might have the biggest downturn in 25 years, and the Sterling has plummeted to record levels against the Euro, but the skiing is exceptional, and the latest bookings show that skiers are eager to take of advantage of the great snow conditions. Its undoubtedly the finest in six seasons, and lots of skiers are announcing it is the best ski snowboarding snow in 10 winters.

Nonetheless remember that big dumps like these mean raised avalanches risks.