Autumn has arrived

In my last post I remarked on how wet it had been in the Alps all July. Well that didn't really change until the end of August, it was a wet summer throughout Europe. However, September and October have really made up for that and it's been really warm and sunny for weeks now, breaking all records for high temps.
But today it's raining, autumn has finally arrived, it's snowing in the higher mountains, so I figured it's time to look back on the summer and forward to what's to come.
The Alpine summer was not all damp gloom and doom, we had some fabulous treks and trips, some superb mountain days. But the raingear certainly made its appearance on a regular basis.

 

I did the Tour of Monte Rosa trek which I hadn't done for a few years, and we were very lucky to have a week of almost perfect weather which meant we got some great photos for the forthcoming guidebook revision which I am doing (new guide due out next spring). This circuit is truly one of the greats and is so much quieter than the more well-known alpine tours (so clearly my guidebook hasn't made any difference to the crowding of these trails!)

Now I am looking ahead to the winter and also to next year. Living in Provence means I can change my programmes a little and offer new areas aswell as remaining loyal to the Alpine roots of my business. I am really trying to promote Provence as a hiking area. Already very well known to the French, I think maybe the average British hillwalker doesn't know how great the hillwalking is over here. Many people associate Provence with the Côte d'Azur and think of crowded beaches, seaside, Monaco and fast Ferraris. But northen Provence is the exact opposite, there is no seaside, there are no crowds, Monaco is a world away...and although we do see the very rare Ferrari or similar, tractors are a far more common sight on our roads.

Along with my regular May Provence Hiking Holiday I am now offering a new trip to be based just further north on the border of Provence and the Vercors region, known for its fine limestone pleateaux. This trip, called Peaks and Passes of the Alpine Foothills, takes us to the famous Forêt de Saou region which is an amazing area for walking with a wealth of summits to go at.

 

 

For the Summer I have a new trip the Queyras Summits which I hardly need to bother promoting right now as it's booking up fast. But since this will most likely feature ever year on my programme it's worth telling you about it. The Queyras region of France is tucked away in the south-east corner, and is already a popular snowshoeing venue for my winter trips.

Although the spectacular peaks and valleys of the Queyras owe their beauty to the effects of glaciation, those glaciers are now long gone and this gives us total freedom to roam.  The terrain is made for hikers, with wooded valleys leading up to grassy meadows often encircled by rocky peaks which very often are accessible to walkers, at least those with a reasonably head for heights and a sure foot. Many of these summits flirt with the 3000m mark and provide belvederes of outstanding beauty, with vast endless vistas stretching in some cases way down to the plains of Italy or towards the northern French Alps. This will be a really good challenging mountain week, just what Trekking in the Alps does best.

 

The summer will also feature the classic Tour of Mont Blanc circuit and a foray into the Italian Gran Paradiso region. I went back there last summer after a few years away, and just loved it, despite mixed weather. So it's back on  my programme. It seems I am also going to do the Tour of the Matterhorn mid August if I can get a full group - this by request!

But before any of that happens there's a winter of snowshoeing ahead. I hope people are going to sign up fast, some trips are filling but others are waiting for bookings. Never mind, if there are no takers I will just go by myself!!!

 

 

 

 



A wet July in the Alps

Back to the Alps for me and so far I have worked 3 groups. In 17 days I have worn full waterproofs for all or part of 15 days!!! Never before has this happened, my suntan has disappeared, I am pale as a Brit! Normally we expect maybe one bad day during a week-long trek, and even then I might get away with just putting on my rain jacket, not those horrid clinging sweaty and most unattractive rainpants. But not this year.

However, there have been some excellent sunny moments too, sometimes a whole half day and each trip has had sunshine where it was needed most, for the best views.

Everyone in my groups has taken the rain better than me, I am clearly just a wimp! And the flowers are truly fabulous this year. Wildlife has also been in abundance which is often the upside of bad weather.

 

My first group came for flower spotting and we spotted many. It was nice to start the summer season in such a relaxing manner with no big days, just strolling along taking it all in. Next up was the Tour of Mont Blanc with a group of 8 from the UK, USA and Australia. Everyone got along famously and despite the knee deep mud on one day, the moral remained pretty high as we made our way around this stunning and spectacular circuit. We were happy to be going backwards as it were - my preferred direction - as the trek was quite busy.

This last week saw me over in the Italian Gran Paradiso, a region I haven't been to for a few years. It was great to renew friendships with hut gardiens, and to remind myself how wild and remote this alpine area is. We often found ourselves alone on the trail for long periods of time which was wonderful even if it was pouring with rain. The finale of the trek was a clear sunny early morning hike up to a high lake where ibex were our only companions, with far reaching views not only of the surrounding peaks but also our previous day's high pass and route down.

This summer is a time of reflection in a way for me. No longer living in the Alps makes it a little more difficult for me to work there as my commute has just got a whole lot longer. That's not really a problem for me as I quite like driving, but these holiday weekends are really a nightmare on the roads. So logistically things are getting complicated. However, I have come up with a cunning plan for next year. My trips will no longer be Saturday to Saturday. I will begin trips either on the Sunday evening or even mid-week. In my recent experience it seems people no longer need to take a week from Saturday to Saturday - the TMB this year met on the Tuesday evening and filled easily. People often tag on a day or two either end of a trek anyway. This will make my commute easier and also allow people to take cheaper flights to and from the trip. A winner all round!

Next up is the Tour of Monte Rosa trek which will also be an opportunity to update my guidebook to that route which has sold out. Just hope everyone coming has bought their Trekking in the Alps and Provence T shirts to liven up my photos. Helen has as you can see here:

That lazy Trekking Guide has finally woken up!

Modelling the new Trekking in the Alps and Provence hoody, essential kit for any self respecting hiker

Sorry sorry sorry, I can't believe it's been 3 months since I wrote anything. And so much has happened! Where to start?
Well mid May saw the Provence Hiking Week which went really well with great weather and a nice group. We did everything we planned and everyone seemed to enjoy it. I hope to do more and more hiking weeks in Provence, both here where I now live in northern Provence and also further south.
The full gallery of shots is on this link: http://goo.gl/0W0QsM
Here are a couple of my favourite shots from the week

A big project this spring has been to set up a website page for Trekking in the Alps and Trekking in Provence Tshirts. This is hosted by Trekking T shirts.com and here are the links: http://www.trekkingtshirts.com/trekking_in_the_alps.html

 

http://www.trekkingtshirts.com/trekking_in_provence.html

 

There are T shirts in a technical wicking fabric which is perfect for hiking, very comfortable light and soft, and also regular cotton t shirts, both men's and women's styles. Also a hoody which is just gorgeous, lovely and cozy and warm. Obviously the colours are bright and very photogenic - except for black...not sure how that got in there. If you buy that one then we sure to wear pink shorts and a yellow hat!

Once you've got your T shirt / hoody do send me photos of it and you in action - all photos will be posted here and on my Facebook page.

Here I am in my purple technical shirt



Apart from that we've been enjoying the Provençal early summer which is really fabulous. Lots of flowers, fruits on the trees and pussycats looking delightful. In just over a week I will be back hiking those alpine trails and I will be posting about the treks. Meanwhile enjoy these shots from the last few days.

Lots of great snowshoeing!

It's been a busy couple of months and I have been somewhat remiss and not written here for a while. But don't worry, Trekking in the Alps has been running on full steam snowshoeing over in the Queyras and the Val Clarée, both of which are in the southern French Alps near to the Italian frontier.

The Queyras in particular is not the easiest place to get to, requiring a fairly long transfer from whichever airport you arrive at, but the unanimous feedback from my groups has been that it's more than worth the effort. Like the Val Clarée, the Queyras is not too spoiled by busy ski resorts and attracts holidaymakers who are looking for the authentic mountain experience.

The snow conditions have been excellent throughout the winter, even during the last couple of weeks of hot sunshine. My groups have all been superb (so far) and it's been a blast all round. I am hoping that will continue for my last week - once again in the Queyras.

For next year I will certainly be offering trips in these regions again, both the programmes already established this year and new ones in the Queyras too.



Here's a whole bunch of shots to sum it up.

Photo Louise Shaxson

Photo Sandy Parker