Heavy snowfall leaves Catalonia’s Port Ainé world’s 4th snowiest ski resort 

Port Ainé, in the Pyrenees of northern Catalonia, has made it onto the list of the world's snowiest ski resorts, ranking fourth behind one in Switzerland and two in Japan. 

The resort has already accumulated more than three meters of snow, and weather forecasts predict more snowfall in the coming days. 

Station workers state that ”it is the snowiest season in the last twenty years.” Successive storms in the area have generated “extraordinary” depths. 

The heavy snowfall brings no relief for the resort’s workers, who must use both heavy machinery and hand tools to prepare the resort for visitors.

Access to the resort frequently requires tire chains or snow tires due to ongoing snowfall. For this reason, Port Ainé’s commercial manager, Gemma Tost, advises skiers to be prepared. 

She notes that heavy snowfall at relatively low elevations means ice or snow can be found on the road leading to the resort. 

Despite the conditions, snowplows have been working since the early morning and are clearing the road, when weather allows. 

What in recent seasons had been a one-time announcement through the resort's information channels has this year become a daily constant: “Progressive opening, subject to weather and safety conditions.”

Nevertheless, visitors to Port Ainé are being rewarded with a white landscape unseen in years and high-quality powder snow.