We made our own luck at Glacier 3000, specifically coming here when the forecast loaded up with snow. The mountain closed for a few days, then re-opened to cold, bluebird excellence. Our visit didn’t happen by accident, and in skiing, flexibility & timing is everything. And because of it, Glacier 3000 will always be remembered for one helluva of a big mountain powder experience.

I shouldn’t have been surprised, but for some reason I didn’t expect the Glacier 3000 to be as accessible to off-piste powder hunting as it is. But there you go, I was wrong. Even if all of the piste terrain is closed (which during our visit it pretty much was due to a huge volume of wind-driven snow being deposited the previous 3 days!) there is a whole range of off-piste freeride, 1400m+ vertical descents that can be accessed via the cable cars from the Col du Pillon & Cabane. What a fantastic place for a crusty old powderhound to ski.

Whilst to the uninitiated, the freeride descents can appear daunting, with the usual discreet reconnaissance from above on the cable cars, and then on the snow itself, most of it is quite approachable. However, one rule is definitely worth noting. Never blindly follow ski tracks here (the same applies in all places but particularly in locations such as this!). There is a healthy cohort of parasail skiers at Glacier 3000 that love nothing more than to lay down an awesome powder run then disappear over a cliff to sail off down the valley, leaving any track followers in their wake wondering how to get down…

The beauty of the mountain is that the portion of the terrain accessible during our visit was visible from the cable cars, allowing an effective scoping exercise before tackling it. If the new ski tunnel under Cabane isn’t open, the easiest (but not easy!) descent is via a long traverse on the intermediate run number 112 (no sign of a piste during our visit!), then dropping into one of the bowls or short couloirs to skier’s left at the start of the main piste descent. Down below the cliff that surrounds much of the Cabane area. A traverse to skier’s right below the cliff line gets one to just below the tunnel exit where choices are plentiful. The new ‘Black Wall’ run was only groomed in the lower section. A ski patroller informed me that they were trying to groom it fully for the first that season and were still working out the kinks in the process. Due to the winch-grooming being attempted lower down the slope, we went far skier’s right between gorgeous rock spires & down a series of fine powder filled gullies, before traversing back left through forest and ending up on the road a few hundred metres from Col du Pillon. A short walk up the road and the process started again, but this time from the very top of the Scex Rouge, by jumping over the barrier below the entry to the amazing Peak Walk …… And so it goes. Jelly legs will (and did) eventually ensue. Pawsome!

Worth remembering that the cable car from Col du Pillon, and hence from Cabane to the summit at Scex Rouge, are the two main lifts of interest to any freeriders. These lifts in combination with the local buses (free for skiers!) are all one needs to access every bit of the terrain at Glacier 3000. So if the mountain shows lift closures but these are running, its game on (assuming you know the lay of the land)!

Travelling by train from Champery (Portes du Soleil) via Aigle is a quintessential Swiss Alps ski travel experience which we highly recommend. Stayed in the gorgeous village of Les Diablerets, set superbly with backdrop of 3,000m+ peaks. Skied endless powder in the lower resort of Diablerets to Villars Gryon whilst Glacier 3000 was closed during, and a day after, the storm. Accommodation midweek in January was easy to get at short notice. Hotel les Sources provided simple, affordable rooms with great food a short stroll from the village centre, and a skate across a snowy field to reach the Les Diablerets gondola lift base. There are a few other well-priced alternatives to this hotel. The village has several nice bars & restaurants, plus all the services one could require. Whilst relatively low elevation at around 1,200m, it was lusciously draped in snow during our visit. An Instagrammers wet dream.

Used the free local PostBus from Les Diablerets village up to Col du Pillon in the morning for the first cable car. Shared it with probably 20 other freeriders – all of whom knew where they were going. Suffice to say that with cable car journeys limiting numbers on the hill, there was no pressure felt to frantically harvest face-shots, which is another great feature of this mountain (particularly given a middling avalanche rating).

We only scratched the surface of the skiing potential here, and with Gstaad, Villars-Gryon-Diablerets & Leysin all closely connected by trains, lifts & buses, a return visit is guaranteed next season. We might even a bit of on-piste skiing when we return. You should check it out too. And make sure you help Protect Our Winters by taking the train. Oh, and all the resorts here are skiable on the Magic Pass - the cheapest most amazing lift pass in the world!

Check out our thoughts on the pros & cons and other info on the Glacier 3000 Overview page
See our video here