The Alps: The DefinAtive Guide to Skiing in the Alps

[Buster Highmen]

For fiends and devotees of skiing with any thought whatsoever of going to the Alps, this is a must have.

https://www.wepowdershop.com/product...uct-9766762271

I scored one last year in Europe and it's an incredibly well done summary of most ski areas in the Alps, from dinky to dominant with lots of notes on stashes and approaches you'd never find anywhere but being there.

It's expensive, but an incredible resource to plan a trip through the motherland of ski culture.

[sillybunt2]

It looks like a wonderful resource but shit at 45 Euros plus shipping to Canada @ 30 Euros, its well over $100CAD! I'll have to conspire with my friends and establish a cooperative lending library.

[subtle plague]

I rarely disagree with buster, but don't give your money to the Dutch demon! He has actively been making a mess for most of us weekend warrior locals ( ) not with his guide (there are no real secrets left...well he hasn't found all of them yet ) , but by actively pointing the crowds to certain areas (not regions) when it snows. It has become worse during the last few years since he decided that this is a way of generating income.

[Scooter65]

I already got all I needed to know from your Vendul/Sedrun/Ski Arena thread...was supposed to go with my bride this winter but Covid....so planning on next winter...

I suppose you cannot know too much...but going to start with Sedrun...we can both ski.

[Tri-Ungulate]

The book needs to be renamed "Find a Stranger in the Alps".



...and based on your recommendation Buster, Ima gonna prolly buy a copy. Although subtle's point is well-taken.

Those damn Dutch.

Edit to add: I can ask family/friends in the Netherlands if they'd be willing to accept a drop shipment of a group buy, which can be forwarded to me then distributed in the US. Might be cheaper than the 30 euro shipping fee to the USA, though it'll take a bit longer.

[Norseman]

I bought one earlier today, but would buy a couple more as gifts if a bulk buy ever happened.

Thanks again, Buster.

[thefortrees]

Most excellent, picked one up. Thanks!

[cat in january]

I could probably be in on a group buy if it happens. Of course I’ll be another year older

[Buster Highmen]

I rarely disagree with buster, but don't give your money to the Dutch demon! He has actively been making a mess for most of us weekend warrior locals ( ) not with his guide (there are no real secrets left...well he hasn't found all of them yet ) , but by actively pointing the crowds to certain areas (not regions) when it snows. It has become worse during the last few years since he decided that this is a way of generating income.

It's just that when the ski magazines at the dentists office are so thoroughly thumbed and the hunger for more skidream food rises, this is a decent placebo.

Maybe we could all ask him to stfu about the storm day area recs. I know one place that has changed from a stash to slashed.

[ClarkleberryFinn]

I rarely disagree with buster, but don't give your money to the Dutch demon! He has actively been making a mess for most of us weekend warrior locals ( ) not with his guide (there are no real secrets left...well he hasn't found all of them yet ) , but by actively pointing the crowds to certain areas (not regions) when it snows. It has become worse during the last few years since he decided that this is a way of generating income.

Interestingly he recently quit...

Deepl translate from the wePowder forum as I don't speak Dutch:

I have been on the books for the last few days and apparently I have missed a few things. I could not suppress a small smile when I read this topic. What a special group of people you are. Like no other, they are able to quickly gather information and data and get to work with it. Also now you were faster than Arjen and I in bringing news. But fortunately you are also able to talk to each other like no other instead of polarising.

The news was already on the street, but to be as clear as possible an answer to your question: Yes, I stopped. It has been 15 years since I was in the waves of Hook of Holland with Tobias van Surfweer. He suggested that I no longer send my snow report to friends by e-mail but put it online. Not much later my first weather report was public under the name versesneeuw.nl Soon after that I met Arjen and Bart and in 2008 we integrated skizone.nl and versesneeuw.nl and launched wePowder.

I've had 15 great years. I've learned a lot, had great adventures, seen parts of the snow world that I will always remember and got to know a lot of new people. But there were also deep valleys. It started with the loss of Steven and then more followed. Friends of yours and mine left their lives in the Alps and still I am afraid if an unknown number calls me during the winter months. But the warmth, unanimity and support that is there on wePowder than for each other at times like this I have always experienced as special.

In 15 years, through fresh snow and wePowder, I have launched more than 3,000 weather reports and more than 330 powder ore. From October to April I was all about the current snow conditions and giving you the best trip. I have received tens of thousands of questions from you through all sorts of channels. Questions such as where to go but also questions based on my analyses. That resulted in beautiful moments from which I learned a lot and which gave me energy.

But when you're on 24/7, things like that become more and more dominant and everything becomes more decisive. Privacy is a precious commodity, I found out. There were moments in the winter when my phone vibrated continuously. During my children's competitions, when I was on a birthday in the evening, when I was on a trip myself or when I just came out of the water after a surfing session and turned it on again. After 15 years in this setting, my energy slowly burned up and circumstances forced me to distance myself. For you this might come raw on your roof now, I have been able to work towards this for the past few years.

But don't worry, Arjen is a fantastic guy and behind him is a team of (technical) wizards who make the most beautiful things online. That's all right. Besides that, wePowder has always been us. We could have come up with the slogan Corona together. The way everyone helps each other here is the basis of our success. wePowder is something we are all a bit like ourselves.

And don't forget, the time of scarce information is far behind us. Once upon a time, we had to make do with fax cards, teletext and avalanche messages hanging at the cash register of a ski resort (if you'd succeeded). In the 30 years that I have been hunting for powder, the information landscape has changed completely. Nowadays it is more the case that you have too much information than too little.

If you miss my message to indicate all that information, then there are more than 3000 weather reports from which you can draw, just like the old and new wePowder Guidebook. And don't be afraid, you can make mistakes. A day that hasn't fallen a day is a day that hasn't been learned. The knowledge of snow and weather in general and microclimates in particular I have mastered by trial and error. There are no failed trips, but you miss an opportunity if you don't learn from it.

When Corona made its entrance I was approached by Tobias from Surfweer and Valentine of Good Waves. They were working on an online course in forecasting surfing and they could use my knowledge of the weather. The course is now live (http://cursus.goedegolven.nl/cursus-info/) and I picked up some waves with Tobias again. After 15 years I have come full circle.

I'm back in virtual school these days and I'm busy with textbooks and online lessons. Besides all the unforgettable adventures, 30 years of snow has taught me that we have to be careful of our mountains and our climate. I am now trying to learn more about that.

It only remains for me to thank you for all the wonderful years!
Stay stoked & May the powder be with you

[nest]

Ordered. Buster always drops the euro knowledge so trusting your judgment. Love nerding out on books like this.