Conditions on the mountain here in Bansko were a little harsh today. Snow and wind closed down the upper part of the mountain. Good news is we got about 20cm of new snow the last two days and the forecast for tomorrow is for cold, sunny and calm weather. We’re expecting more snow between Wednesday and the weekend, with more sunny days in between.
Due to heavy winds, the Todorka, Bunderitza 2 and Plato lifts were closed. De facto, the whole top area of the mountain wasn’t open, making the lower slopes more crowded than usual. Winds are supposed to settle down overnight, so most likely these lifts will be working by tomorrow. Lift queues in the resort area are at their normal size, which means you won’t be waiting in line too long except for the Kolarski lift. At the gondola, the line was small at 8:30, but by 10:30 AM the wait was over an hour long. If you can make it to the gondola queue by 8:30 AM you should be on your way up quickly.
The gondola queue at 10:30 AM.
Snow conditions today were good for the first few runs, if you like powder skiing that is. During the night, about 10-15cm of fresh snow covered the groomed slopes (they normally groom them the previous evening, so that the slopes have time to harden), making conditions hard for beginners and many intermediate skiers. On days after an overnight snowfall, you can expect the slopes to not be groomed most of the time. After 10 AM the pistes had turned to soft moguls all over the mountain, not very fun conditions for skiing. The good news is that we can expect perfectly groomed slopes tomorrow morning. Conditions on the N.5 and N.10 Shiligarnika runs were slightly better than the steeper Balkaniada, Todorka and Tomba runs. If you have a VIP package with us, you can switch out the skis you have for a pair of powder skis, as they work best on days like this.
The Balkaniada ski run. Notice the soft snow.
Apart from the bad piste conditions today, the wet snowfall also took its toll on skiers and borders. It doesn’t take more than 2-3 hours in such conditions for many skiing jackets to start soaking. Temperatures are set to fall over the next few days, so it seems like the bad weather is behind us. And while it was snowing in the mountain, down in Bansko it’s been raining the whole time.
The N.10 Shiligarnik ski run.
The N.5 Shiligarnik ski run.
Ski & Board Traventuria is a leading provider of lift passes, equipment rental, airport transfers and ski school for the Bansko area. To book your next ski vacation in Bansko with us, please check our website – www.skibansko.bg
