UKH

Hello,

Looking for advice/experiences ski touring in the Ortler region in early/mid march.

We have flights booked to Milan on 9th March, original plan was day touring at lower altitudes in NW Italy (hence the earlier travel dates) but the Ortler region has caught our imagination. Most trip reports I can find seem to be late March-mid April. The Huts open from 8th of March but it's obviously early in their season.

Has anyone been ski touring in the Ortler region this early in March? Best to wait until later in the month?

Grateful of any advice. 

Iain 

Can't give any useful info other than giving you a bump

Had a fantastic week there last year in mid-April - loads of info here http://www.cosleyhouston.com/alps-ski-ortler.htm 

Hi. I live just south of the Dolomites and ski tour usually twice a week. I follow conditions here obsessively! Current conditions are more akin to what you would expect to find in April. Awesome! Hard snowpack with low avalanche risk:

https://avalanche.report/albina-web/bulletin/bulletin/latest?lang=en

Global warming seems to have really kicked in over the last few years. 

Most summits already have spring snow conditions. Unless we have a dump of snow between now and when you come out I'd say you'll find Ortler region OK. Two areas I'm familiar with: Malga Mare from Val di Peio on the southern side, and Val Martello around to the north. I wouldn't hesitate to do tours from either of those locations even now, which is indeed ridiculously early. 

These are two forums I use for current trip reports and conditions if you can be bothered to grapple with the language barrier:

http://thetop.it/index.php?page=view_ski

http://www.on-ice.it/onice/onice_reports.php?type=1 (Site's down at the moment but normally works OK)

Thanks Carless and Kean, sounds like it could be a goer. Thanks for the links thetop.it looks like a great resource 

Iain

Went there (hut to hut from Sulden) mid-late March in 2016 and conditions were OK including an ascent of 3900m+ Konigspitze.