The Dog Days of Summer? Dogs Don’t Ski, We Do

In North America
Today is the first day of June –summer officially starts in 21 days – but I’m not writing this with a heavy heart. Why not, you ask? Well, SnoCountry reports 3 areas in North America still running. Arapahoe Basin actually got new snow 2 days ago. The summer season has already started at Timberline, and the Blackcomb glacier summer ski season opens Monday. Of course, there are still a lot of happy people out there making backcountry turns.

In Europe
I recently got cheered up about glacier skiing in Europe. As you might remember, for the past two years I’ve been reporting about all the summer skiing areas in Europe that are no longer running lifts because the glaciers have receded due to global warming. Well, it feels good to hear positive news about a glacier ski area that will have lifts running June 23rd.

Mike Beaudet, the founder of Ski Pros Megeve in Megeve, France sent me an update on summer skiing on the glacier in the Cervinia, Italy area. Mike says: "As an American instructor teaching in the Alps for over 20 years there are still places to go from about mid June to early September. I take summer clients to the Cervinia, Italy side of the Zermatt Glacier. 5 hours of skiing and lots of things to do in the afternoon. Great food, good hotels, and inexpensive at that! A quick flight into Geneva and a 3 hour drive and you're there. Great thing to do if you are a beginner - intermediate and want to get ready for the start of the winter season."

At the foot of the Matterhorn, what I consider the most majestic mountain in all of the Alps, the Cervinia/Zermatt area is glacier skiing in the Alps that the intermediate skier can revel in. From New York you are only 8 hours from where they invented the term – alpine skiing.

_{Photo © Armin Schroeder}