In true style, Chamonix summoned one final dump of powder up high at Les Grands Montets on Friday, kindly providing fabulous conditions for the last weekend of the season. Of course all the rides to the top before 11am were reserved within minutes of the meteo report being published, and sure it was chewed to pieces by 10am, but the early bird catches the worm and it was more than worth it!

We have had an incredible season, being graced with celebrities discovering this fabulous valley, being entertained by seasonnaires and tourists alike both in the town and on the piste, enjoying a fancy new lift, not to mention ton after metric ton of great snow, and despite the failing worldwide economy pulled in enough tourism to keep the town bustling and healthy! I have managed to progress a little, fall over alot, learn about powder, end up headfirst in powder, fall off a chairlift, keep that incident quiet and have bucketloads of fun!

The closing party at Les Grands Montets was as crazy, fun-filled and alcohol fuelled as ever… with ski bums from every corner of the valley donning their tutus, bat-suits and questionable kilts, and heading up the mountain armed with copious amounts of alcohol! For those who were brave enough to take place in the ‘water skiing’ I have full respect! It takes a whole different kind of bravery to want to dunk yourself in water that cold, even in the spring! So with countless beers, a few lazy runs and plenty of drunken antics, the inhabitants of the Chamonix Valley celebrated the close of another season in one of the most incredible places on earth.

And now the time has finally come for me to hang up my snowboard, boots and gloves, polish up my mountain bike and dig out my knee pads for the summer. Thankfully Summer in Cham is far from dull and I am now watching excitedly as the stores close and change their stock, the bar staff take a well earned break, the seasonaires pack their bags promising to be back in November and an entirely new and equally exciting season begins.

It is with an element of sadness that I sign off, but with plenty of optimism as summer seems to fly by at the speed of light, and it won’t be too long before we begin celebrating the start of winter again and the 2009/10 season…

Enjoy your summer, and look forward to winter!

A Bientot!

Laura

So the snow is a little slushy, we’re seeing more green than white from the valley floor, and people are walking around town in shorts and sporting attractive tan lines. It’s not over yet! There is still the closing party to rock and although the majority of the ski areas are closed or closing.. we still have Brevent, Flegere and Les Grands Montets! Les Houches remained defiant until the last lift before closing last Sunday and we even managed to find some untracked snow off the back! The lower slopes were something of a minefield with patches of mud to avoid, however there was plenty of fun to be had and once again I felt that Les Houches is under rated as a ski area.

I headed up to Brevent in the week and the slopes were peaceful but deep, giving me a feeling of riding in slow motion and having all the time in the world to get my turns right! It feels like I learn to ride all over again everytime out as my better half always shows me ways to improve. Seems a shame that we are so close to the end of the season! If you head to Brevent, get up there between 11am and 2pm for the best of the day’s snow, and ideally, head straight up to the top. Runs off the Cornu are totally rideable but no contest for the snow up high!

So, the closing party at Les Grands Montets is a huge deal, a bit like a prom or graduation ball in that people get all dressed up in their finest threads. The difference is that ball gowns and skirts are more often seen on boys than girls. Basically, minimal snowboarding/ski gear is required, your actual skis/board and boots are acceptable and obviously a helmet but thats about it. I have yet to decide what to wear but can pretty much guarantee you that it won’t include any form of gore-tex. The closing is a great day out and a perfect excuse to sit in the sun, soak up the rays, enjoy the mountains and drink your bodyweight in beer. Just be careful on the homerun!

Back in town there is not a scrap of snow to be seen and the bars are slowing down for inter-season. The Petit Canard Awards took place on Tuesday night at Cantina. The awards were well received, well deserved and well celebrated into the early hours! The LPC awards are very closely fought and nominees performances will have been judged by dedicated partygoers throughout the season. The awards for ‘Biggest Flirt Male/Female’ are usually the most competitive and the prizes are well worth the effort. Or so I’m told.

There are several closing parties coming up, Terrasse will be rocking in the centre of town on Saturday night with another party taking place at Chambre Neuf at the same time, take your pick - there is plenty of choice!
All that remains is for me to celebrate a great season, finalise my outfit for the Grands Montets closing on the 7th and find an open bar in which to watch the Grand prix through interseason.

See you out there!
Laura

Living in the Chamonix Valley is a bit like being in a constant, interactive Geography lesson. In a great way! The valley is stunningly beautiful, awe inspiring and offers incredible experiences for everyone, year round. That said, the valley and surrounding mountains can also be incredibly dangerous. Nothing really brings this home more than getting up close and experiencing things first hand. A waterfall, frozen or flowing, the rush of the river as it sweeps relentlessly through town rolling boulders along its bed, the sheer height and exposure of the Aiguille du Midi, or getting close to a glacier. I have just had my first glacier experience, snowboarding off piste on the Argentiere Glacier at Les Grands Montets.

For ages I have listened to people chatting about their experiences of glacier riding from the comfort and security of the bar in Chambre Neuf, and am acutely aware that glacier riding should be taken very seriously, and that you should always be guided by someone who knows the area, how to spot the dangers and keep you safe. I went with someone who I trust implicitly to keep me safe!

We started out at the top of Grands Montets after taking a quick warm up run. At the top, we had a good look around from the viewing platform and checked out our planned route from above. Leaving the piste early on, we headed out to the right along a route known as the Rognan 2. We rode across wide open snowfields avoiding the crevasses, down couloirs, and out onto the main part of the glacier, carefully picking our way the whole time. What an incredible experience! The glacier is indescribable - the only way to understand is to get out and experience it. Carefully! I am working my way towards riding the infamous Vallèe Blanche, but only when I’m really really ready!

Going back to valley level, we had some rubbish weather early on this week, with rain and cloud smothering the valley and making skiing and snowboarding pretty unpleasant! On one of these days we left our boards at home and went up to the Cascade du Dard. The Cascade (French for waterfall) is just over halfway up to the Tunnel du Mont Blanc. Thankfully you can drive up most of the way, and walk the last ten minutes! At the moment the waterfall is still part frozen and a very strange and beautiful sight. The falls are well signposted and well worth a look, even in the rain!

Up top, most of the resorts are doing ok considering the time of year and the fact that I spent lost of today sunbathing! Brevent and Flegere are a tad slushy, as is Le Tour, however Les Grands Montets is holding up well and we are hoping for another lot of snow this week.

Enjoy - I’m off for a roast at Monkey Bar!

Laura

It’s all change here in Cham, Spring has firmly installed herself in the valley and Summer is hitching up her flowery skirts and sprinting toward us. Not to worry though, unlike some other unfortunate resorts nearby, Cham’s ski areas are scheduled to stay open well into May. This means we still have over a month of skiing and snowboarding! Some of the best days of last season were in the tail end of April running on into early May so don’t even consider hanging up your boots yet!

The Boss de Bosses mogul competition attracted huge numbers as usual, most to spectate and some to compete, with skiers and boarders from all over the Alps chucking themselves down a steep, bitey mogul field before launching themselves as far as possible over a kicker a the bottom - all as fast as they can possibly manage. This madness ensures a great spectacle and is a great excuse for everyone to sit on the mountain at Les Grands Montets and get drunk all day! The competition went off without a hitch, that is until team Cham got their backsides kicked by Zermatt for the third year running! Nonetheless a good day was had by all who can remember it and presumably by those who can’t!

Cham has had it’s fair share of excitement recently with the Boss de Bosses and some town rumours suggesting that Prince William has been staying up in Le Lavancher, adding to the list of royals and celebrities falling in love with our beloved valley. And why would they not? On top of the great terrain, so far this season we have had on average one big dump of snow every week to ten days followed by clear weather, thus ensuring that we have rarely had anything to complain about except tired muscles and sunburn! Sure, the last couple of days in town have been a little wet, but it’s still snowing on top and that’s all we’re really worried about.

I have been enjoying the snow whenever possible and have found myself up at Brevent and Flegere enjoying fresh snow and also up at Le Tour attempting to learn how to ride switch. This is not going all that well. Apparently, in order to build up to 180’s and other super cool tricks I need to master riding switch. So far I have managed three very sketchy linked turns without falling over. I’m working on it.

In town, the comedy Sunday at Le Jekyll is back (hurrah!) and I have been veering off my usual evening course frequenting Cham Sud and propping up the bars in Monkey, Munster and South Bar. Chambre has been busier than ever, with the tourists dancing away to Melvil apres ski as usual and those with the stamina finishing up with a boogie in Le Garage, Cham’s popular Cham Sud late night spot.

The weather is looking a little unsettled for the next few days, with cloud and showers likely, nonetheless Cham has plenty to offer on bad weather days including museums, cinema, the ice grotto on the Mer du Glace and plenty of other activities for those with an adventurous streak.

Get out there and explore!

If you weren’t in Cham this week, you missed out on THE best snow of the season! It was gone as quickly as it arrived, but provided epic conditions for two awesome days, and now we are back to normal, heavy, Spring snow! It didn’t matter which bar you walked into or who you spoke to on Wednesday night, everyone in the town was exhausted, elated, satisfied, after riding snow that reached well over your hips and grazed your shoulders as you put in turn after incredible turn in super soft powder. I can totally see how one can become addicted to that feeling!

I rode Brevent (they didn’t open the top) which had literally tons of fresh snow on offer and plenty of cartwheeling potential for me as a relative newcomer to riding powder. I am reliably informed that Les Grands Montets was indescribable and verging on unridable it was so deep, and I’m glad I didnt choose that option or I’d probably still be stuck now!

Having recovered from the powder session, Saturday saw us treking over to Vallorcine with our American friend who has come to see what Cham has to offer. I love the nature trail at Vallorcine, riding through the trees and practising little jumps off the sides of the piste - it’s a great, chilled place to relax and enjoy the mountain without feeling pressured by the masses. The runs were in relatively good shape after the snowfall a few days before and had plenty of coverage, but inevitabley became softer and heavier as the day wore on and temperatures rose. Another highlight of  Vallorcine is eating crepes at the station restaurant at the bottom of the gondola. This place doesn’t look like much from the outside but the food is great; delicioulsly simple and very traditional. Definitely worth a visit if you haven’t already been!

I will admit to slacking a little on the social and apres side of things recently and have been secretly relieved that my picture has not appeared in the local party publication ‘Le Petit Canard’ for some time! I am however working on this situation and with lots of guests visiting over the next week or two there is no excuse not to party! Don’t forget the St Patricks Day celebrations - Munster have got Charlie Bob Marley spinning the decks and there will be tons of other parties to choose from. Wherever you decide to go, a green and black Guiness hat is mandatory attire as are shamrock earrings for the girls! I am fairly certain that I’ll be kicking off with a visit to MBC for my usual chicken wing challenge and then heading out to join all the other Leprechauns in the festivities!

On a slightly more serious note, there is good news for Mont Blanc Unlimited pass holders! Compagnie du Mont Blanc and the Les Houches authorities (SEPP/LH SG) seem to have put aside their many differences for now, and are granting MBU passholders full use of the Les Houches Ski Area. This is fabulous news as the Prarion return ticket situation was becoming boring and even the lifties seemed tired of it! So anyway, we now have full access to the Prarion and the Bellevue lifts and I am heading straight up to the park for a tumble or three. Expect me to be complaining bitterly about my many bruises next time!

Till’ then!

Laura

Spoilt, spoilt, spoilt! I have dined at what is arguably Chamonix’s most popular restaurant twice in the last two weeks! Normally this happens once every few months when we have guests to impress, yet I have found myself ordering my favorite Duck Teriyake twice recently, and what a pleasure it was on both occasions! I generally don’t need to look at the menu, I just go ahead and order the Tempura Squids followed by the Duck Teriyake - no question. Recent friends though, are into the sharing thing. I was taught this as a child but seem to have misplaced my manners and have been known to attack people stupid enough to bring their dining implements anywhere near my plate. Especially when it comes to precious Munchie food. There is something to be said for this sharing thing though, and despite my initial reluctance, I have discovered that all of the food at Munchie is amazing and might even go wild and order the Seafood Hotpot myself next time… maybe. If you are planning a trip to Munchie, and I strongly advise you to do so, do remember to book in advance. It’s extremely popular and tables are almost never available to walk-ins.

We have again been spoilt with the snow…  A recent sprinkling has improved conditions up top and kept us on our toes with a good covering in town providing plenty of excitement for road users.  After my fall at Les Grands Montets the other day, I decided to head to Les Houches for a confidence boost. Les Houches is a great place to go in bad weather or if like me, you occasionally need a chilled and relaxing day in a cruisy resort to get your confidence back after scaring yourself stupid. I had a great day and was amazed again at how good it is to go back to basics once in a while.

I had my first proper  powder experience at Brevent this week, and discovered that the myth that falling in powder doesn’t hurt is a lie. If you are going fast enough, it hurts! I had a great day riding the shallower areas of the Hotel Face and after getting all cocky about my powder ability, I started to ride faster, nosedived, cartwheeled three times and then got up, carried on and did it all over again! I love learning new tricks! Despite the recent snow, its probably best to avoid the Brevent home run for the time being as it is suffering as a result of the rise in temperatures and is now very sticky and strewn with rocks.

Courmayeur also received a visit this week. When the valley here is shrouded with cloud you can often escape through the tunnel and find bright sunshine over the other side. This was exactly the case on my extra day off and I spent a happy day riding the pistes with friends and eating delicious Italian pizza. Before heading home I decided to check out a resident of the village who had caused a friend a spot of bother a few weeks ago. This friend had been somewhat inebriated on holiday and had incurred a 1000.00 euro fine after riding a twenty foot red plastic crocodile down the main street. The croc resides outside the Hotel Royal E Golf if you fancy giving it a go, but be warned the Italian cops are no fun and get rather cross!

On that note, I am going to plan what mischief I can get up to this week!

Laura

I met a movie star this week! Chamonix has recently become something of a magnet for celebrities with Kylie tearing up the slopes at Les Grand Montets and Alan Partridge being spotted devouring a fondue in town. My new claim to fame involves a rising Bollywood starlet who has this week been enjoying being able to leave her apartment and walk around town without being recognised, let alone mobbed! The celeb, who will remain nameless, joined us at the comedy night at the Jekyll and like all of us spent most of the time rolling around laughing at the talented comedians and the outrageous compere. Being Welsh (and rather stupidly admitting it), I got a bit of a grilling, all in the name of fun and a great night was had by all, including said celeb.

I have been a busy bunny with work this week but managed to get to cinema ‘Le Vox’ to see Slumdog Millionaire. If you haven’t yet seen it yet, go! Even us Chamoniards have seen it, allbeit a few weeks late, and in my opinion it deserved every one of the EIGHT Oscars it won. I love going to the flicks and love that we have a decent cinema tucked away here in Cham. Admittedly you have to wait a few weeks for the English versions to arrive here, but patience is a virtue even I have a little of and not many ski resorts are blessed with a cinema and popcorn machine.

So, on to the important stuff, the mountains! I have had a great time this week, I have been taken on an adventure into the back bowls at Le Tour and Vallorcine, an area which is definitely to be avoided on mid to high risk avalanche days but offers some great riding when in condition as they have been recently. The pistes have been in great condition, if a little heavy on the home runs.

Yesterday spring arrived!  We spent the day riding a surprisingly peaceful Les Grands Montets (I love transfer day) in a hoodie and no jacket! It was baking and many people had not had any idea how hot it would become. With a high of twelve degrees most people were cooking and flinging off their down jackets by 11am!  After learning lots in the park and trying to perfect my stance over rollers all day, I ended up making a ‘tired mistake’ and catching my heel edge on a black run at the end of the day. I cruised 15 metres down the hill head first and provided plenty of amusement for the people on the chairlift above! We called it a day and cruised down the Pierre a Ric to the car and a well deserved white chocolate and myrtille cookie. What a great end to a fabulous spring day!

It seems I will be donning my down jacket again this week with more snow on the way! I will be heading to Les Houches for the snowy days for some cruisy tree lined runs. As far as my social calendar goes, it’s comedy night again tonight!

See you there!
Laura

Valentines day for me was spent in true Chamonix style with my special someone, riding Flegere and watching the Helly Hansen Winter Ride. The competition was hot, with everyone vyeing for a place in the International Freeride Championships. To be honest it is a tricky job for the spectator as keeping the competitors in sight requires some seriously fast riding or inside knowledge of a fabulous vantage point. Oh, and the competitors had a pretty tough challenge too!

The snow conditions were great as we had enjoyed a dusting a few days before, and although most sensible aspects were tracked out, the snow was still soft and deep off piste, with plenty of coverage on piste too. I must say that I am loving that we are able to ride out the home runs all the way to the valley floor at Brevent and Flegere at the moment, this was possible for about half a day last year! After shredding the pistes all day we then headed for apres at Chambre Neuf for a demi, braving the carnage created by locals and tourists alike, all inevitably half-cut and dancing their thermal socks off to Melvill, Chambre’s renowned apres band.

In Chamonix, the perfect restaurant to enjoy a romantic Valentines dinner has to be Casa Valerio, although lets not limit this to Valentines day! For any occasion ‘Casa’ is low key, welcoming and offers fabulous Italian cuisine. A word of warning though, its probably wise to avoid the Spaghetti Gambas if you are on a first date or hoping to impress; the dish is undoubtedly stunning, but the mess you get into while de-shelling the prawns and langustines amidst tomato sauce can be less than attractive!

My social calendar this week potentially involves some wine tasting at Cha Cha Cha on Thursday evening, and as usual a visit to Le Pub. I managed to miss the Six Nations over the weekend but my Scottish colleague was a reliable indicator of how the game went, he has been weeping bitter tears ever since. What is definitely in my calendar is the comedy at the Jekyll on Sunday, I have had word that it is roll-on-the-floor hilarious, and will be heading down there for a pie and a laugh first hand.

On that note, I’m off to put my gear together for a day at Le Tour tomorrow. Do enjoy the snow that is falling relentlessly outside my window as I type. I plan to!

Laura

Henceforth I shall be known as the Tazmanian Devil. Such is the speed at which I have been whirling through the European Alps recently. Work has taken me to resorts across France, Switzerland and Austria and I must say that the Mad Dog guide came in very handy after I arrived in St Anton without my toothbrush or sunscreen and needed to find a pharmacy pronto. The language here is beyond me and so I was able to a) find a pharmacy, and b) tell them what I needed, and all before the lifts opened! Hurrah!

Back here in Cham the weather has not been fabulous but we have had more snow and lots of lively apres ski! Les Grands Montets has had plenty of great riding on offer, in particular the Magic Forest as riding in the open in the snow and wind can be a tad disorientating!

With less time spent on the hill this week I have had to put on my socialite hat and hit the pub for a drink or three. I always seem to manage to catch the football there, and even though to be honest I have no idea what is going on, I generally just cheer when everyone else does and soak up the atmosphere! Monday night was spent in MBC as its half price chicken wing night, and I am usually challenged to a contest to see who can eat the most wings in one sitting. My current score is 21, which sounds alot but I have a friend who can manage 26, It irritates me that I have not yet beaten this but I can assure you that I am working on it.

So for the rest of this week it seems we could be seeing a fair amount of wind and snow, I have seen very little of Flegere so far this season and so am planning to get up there as soon as possible, probably on Saturday to cheer on the competitors in the Helly Hansen Winter Ride.  The racing begins at 8:30 and if you are lucky you might just catch a glimpse of a few of them careering down the hill.  Having said that, if its snowing heavily I shall head for the trees at Grands Montets or Les Houches.

See you up there!

Well it seems I returned to Chamonix just in time to catch the last of the great snow before the Foehn Wind hits! I made a brief trip back to the UK last weekend and sat there tearing my hair out in the departure lounge at Geneva on the way out; the snow was falling thick and fast and causing so much trouble that they had to close the runway! One three hour delay later and I was making my way down the gangway to the plane muttering all manner of obscenities under my breath at having missed all the action. It turned out that the snow and then warming caused plenty of problems here in Cham too with tons of closures, avalanches left, right and centre and avi bombing waking everyone up at the crack of dawn! It’s always good to see the family, stock up on Monster Munch and grab the latest glossy mags, but then I always breathe a sigh of relief as I drive back into the mountains. London is just not my cup of tea.

On my return I headed to Les Houches for a slide, it’s always a pleasure and usually nice and chilled compared to the other ski areas, especially in January! The pistes are wide, cruisy and if you are feeling adventurous you can head through the trees to La Viele Luge for a vin chaud. I had a great day and am loving the new board, although I have to admit that it is teaching me a thing or two!

My next stop was Courmayeur, mainly because it’s fabulous, included on the MBU pass (a definite incentive to go for the MBU rather than the basic CLP), you can get cheap tunnel tickets when you flash your MBU at Montenvers and all in all it’s so worth the trip through the tunnel. And I haven’t even mentioned the food yet.

We took the gondola up, headed straight for the bar and ordered two Bombardinos. If you havent yet had one of these it would be a crime not to try one next time you are there! There should be a warning really as its basically a mug filled with several varieties of alcohol, but it certainly gets you started and I’m told it improves your snowboarding. I’m not totally convinced about that as I could barely see after drinking half, but at least I only had one board to worry about. I really do feel sorry for skiers sometimes… so complicated!

We avoided the Saturday ski schools, took to the trees and were rewarded with super-soft powder and very few tracks to follow!  This is great practice for me as I’m trying to master my toe-side powder turns and had a few near misses with trees and the like! After plenty of adventures we cruised over to my favorite mountain restaurant ‘Da Geremia’  which is right on the piste, overlooks almost all of the resort and has the best food I have ever encountered on a mountain. It THE place to go for lunch and naturally a beer in between runs!

Cheers!