Typical operating window
January–MarchBlack Sea moisture and Caucasus uplift normally build the winter base from December.Verified planning context
Snow, weather and avalanche context
Historical patterns help you compare trips. They do not predict your week or replace the operator's daily decisions.
Strongest comparable snow evidence
758 mm SWE median · 721–858 mm interquartile rangeMestia ERA5-Land grid cellTier C · modelled estimate · low confidenceSnow character
transitionalDeep storm snow is possible. Wind transport, warming, and persistent weak layers can create complex spatial patterns.Public avalanche information
Georgia National Environmental Agency warningsNo verified public regional avalanche bulletin was identified for Svaneti.Weather and flight context
Moist western flow meets high Caucasus terrain, with major variation between valleys and ridges.
- Mountain cloud
- Limited observation density
- Strong wind and remote access
Meteorological reference area
Svaneti and Mestia catalogue area
- Includes
- Svaneti mountains linked to the Mestia program.
- Excludes
- The wider Caucasus profile and other Georgian regions.
- Elevation
- No verified operator-terrain elevation band is public. Each evidence value retains its site elevation.
Evidence pack
Measurements, claims and gaps stay separate.
Tier CModelled snowfall water equivalent758 mm SWE median · 721–858 mm interquartile range
- Site
- Mestia ERA5-Land grid cell · 43.0000, 42.7000 · 5.3 km from Mestia reference point
- Period
- Calendar years 1991–2020
- Completeness
- 360 monthly means; all 30 calendar years contain 12 values.
- Method
- ERA5-Land monthly mean daily snowfall accumulation was multiplied by calendar days and 1,000, then summed by calendar year.
- Limitation
- This reference area supports evidence discovery and comparison. It is not an operating-area or tenure boundary. The sampled gateway cell can differ substantially from ski elevations. This unadjusted 0.1° reanalysis grid cell is not an observation, snow depth, or terrain-wide total. Grid elevation and wind redistribution can cause substantial local bias.
- ERA5-Land monthly averaged data from 1950 to presentCopernicus Climate Change Service · accessed 2026-08-26
Monthly evidence
Each cell keeps its measurement type and unit. Reanalysis water equivalent is not snow depth. Text-only cells preserve a representative data gap.
| Jan | Feb | Mar | Apr | May | Jun | Jul | Aug | Sep | Oct | Nov | Dec |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 100.4 mm SWE | 76.2 mm SWE | 119.3 mm SWE | 88.9 mm SWE | 48.7 mm SWE | 3.9 mm SWE | 0 mm SWE | 0 mm SWE | 10.7 mm SWE | 65.1 mm SWE | 79 mm SWE | 102.2 mm SWE |
Commercial operator assessment
Operator assessment process not independently verifiedThe operator must assess current snow, avalanche terrain, weather, aircraft limits, and rescue options. No private operational plan is inferred.
Sources and evidence notes
- WMO Climatological NormalsWorld Meteorological Organization · accessed 2026-08-25
- ERA5-Land hourly data from 1950 to presentCopernicus Climate Change Service · accessed 2026-08-25
- National Environmental Agency weather and warningsNational Environmental Agency of Georgia · accessed 2026-08-25
- Published operator and trip inventoryHeliski International editorial team · accessed 2026-08-25
- ERA5-Land monthly averaged data from 1950 to presentCopernicus Climate Change Service · accessed 2026-08-26