With the fresh snow over the last couple of days there is an increased risk of avalanche.  In the Haute Savoie the snow fell without too much wind but it is heavy.  Below 2200 meters on all north facing slopes the base is not very good and avalanches could be triggered by a single skier.  In the Savoie there is a high risk (4) of avalanches in the Bauges and Maurienne areas, risk 3 in other sectors.

Towards the Southern Alps the risk is lower due to the good snow conditions in November but all off-piste skiers and snowboarders should remember basic backcountry safety.

In the Pyrénées and Isère skiers should be careful on north facing slopes.  In Corsica the east slopes and corniches are unstable.

More information about weather and the avalanche risk can be found here

The friends who were with me in Le Lioran over the weekend decided to check out the 3Vs.  I had a free ticket to La Rosiere but decided not to waste my diesel going there.

They said the snow at 3200 meters at Val Thorens was worse than at Le Lioran, not a good sign.  Over in Méribel you could ski back to resort, with some care, thanks to the snow canons.  The snow over in Courchevel was good above 2200 meters and there was some off-piste skiing to be had, if you were on rock skis.  There was good snow in a number of sectors that were not open (lifts not running), apparently the resort is saving the slopes for Christmas.

Val d’Isère claimed to have 80% of its domain open on the French version of the site with 1000 meters of vertical.  They are probably including the Glacier de la Grande Motte in that figure.

There was a bit of fresh snow fell over the weekend in the Savoie… nothing like the quantities forecast by Snowforecast.com :-(.

The Monetier sector at Serre Che, opened and the trip reports and photos I’ve seen said there was plenty of fresh.