First it was Zermatt, on 1 August. Now it is Saas-Fee, which is closing from Monday 10th. In the middle of summer, the two resorts in Valais where it was possible to ski at this time of year have had to shut down: the glaciers no longer guarantee safe conditions for skiers.
The reason is simple: prolonged high temperatures and virtually no night-time frost. The ice and snow are changing to such an extent that even with intensive maintenance, minimum safety standards cannot be guaranteed. The Saas-Fee ski lifts acknowledge this quite bluntly on their website. It is not a standard precautionary measure: it is simply that, physically, it no longer works.
What makes this closure particularly striking is that Saas-Fee was one of the few places in Europe where people could ski in summer. Several national alpine skiing teams used its glaciers for their pre-season training camps. With Zermatt and Saas-Fee both closed at the same time, many teams have already set off for the southern hemisphere, where it is now winter. The Swiss coaching staff also plan to travel there in the coming weeks, as there are no alternatives left in Europe.
There is no reopening date. Management is assessing the situation on a day-to-day basis. For years, we’ve been told that the glaciers are retreating. This August, two of the best-known resorts have simply closed their slopes because the ice can no longer support the weight of a skier.