Sun and snow as conditions get a little changeable

 

This is full on busy season for Trekking in the Alps. I've just done two back to back trips which meant 12 days away from home. Far too much of course, but apart from missing my own bed, husband and pusscat, I certainly couldn't complain about anything else. Great groups and once again pretty good conditions prevailed.

First of all I was with a group of seasoned Trekking in the Alps snowshoers in Samoëns in the Giffre Valley not far from Morzine and Flaine. They had a great time in perfect powder. The sun came out, they had made an effort with their outfits and everything went wonderfully.

After this I had a group of beginngers (at least to Trekking in the Alps) who were based in Switzerland for a week of snowshoeing around Mont Blanc. We were very lucky with the weather as it broke early during the week, but luckily we went to the right places and had great hikes, even if the views were somewhat compromised the last two days. Snow in the forests can also be very pretty and after all if it didn't snow we'd just be "shoeing".

We've also had some good wildlife spotting - ibex, chamois and even an ermine. The new group took to snowshoeing really well and after a few minutes hesitation were launching themselves down the slopes like old timers.

Next stop Simplon and Gemmi Passes where it's forecast to be cold and snowy - just as I thought spring might be on the horizon. Here in Provence spring has definitely arrived as you can see here

Meanwhile getting back to the snowshoeing, the photos tell it far better than I can so here goes

 

 

Loads of snow, lots of sun and some lovely colours!!

Two trips have flown by, amost back to back, so lots to report.
Firstly I had my regular Dream Team group, this time in the Queyras region, which has proved to be a fabulous snowshoe venue, despite being somewhat tricky to get to.

On both trips there this year we've been lucky to have fresh snowfall just before and during our trip. This has given superb conditions. The walks themselves are very varied and with the Dream Team we managed to do some really good summits as well as the high cols.

 

After that I had a 4 day trip in the Aosta Valley, which has proved popular for several years. Although the snow level around Aosta itself is nothing exceptional so far this year, that's not the case up near Courmayeur where there is more snow than I've seen for some time.

 



A couple of nights at the stunning Rifugio Bonatti allowed us to really enjoy some perfect cold sunny weather.

The photos tell it better than I can. Do take note of how beautifully turned out all my models are - this is how to dress in the mountains, see how the pink and green enhance the shots!!! All those of you who insist on showing up in grey and black.....isn't it time to embrace the colourful jacket?????

Thanks to my groups these last two weeks for making the effort - I know you're pleased you did.



 

Ciao Skip

It is with great sadness that I learnt today that Skip, the Rifugio Bonatti dog, has passed away.
For me Skip was without question the best dog in the world, he welcomed me every time I went to the hut, he often accompanied me and my group on our walks, and he lent a very willing ear and paw during some difficult times for me.
Skip, I will miss you.

Queyras snowshoeing - a new venue

It's always exciting going to a new mountain range, discovering new walks, poring over different maps, trying to work out new vistas.
The Queyras, situated in southeast France, right up against the Italian frontier, certainly didn't disappoint.

We were lucky to have a good 20cms of fresh snowfall last weekend, beautiful light snow that fell without wind. Then a light top up on Wednesday too. In between it was sunny and cold, just like it should be in the Alps in winter.

The walks took us up through pine and larch forest to cols and summits at around 2300m where we were greeted with fabulous views, notably of the nearby Ecrins massif and the mighty Monte Viso just over the border in Italy, famous for being visible from so many of the 4000m peaks in the Alps.

As usual the photos tell it better than I can.

Photo Joan Morley

I'll be back with another group in the Queyras in 2 weeks - let's hope we enjoy the same fabulous conditions. This will definitely be a regular on my snowshoeing programme. 

Winter starts with fab weather and perfect conditions

The Alps have had plenty of early snowfall this season so conditions for my first week snowshoeing were excellent.
We were in the Val Clarée, near Briançon in the southern French Alps based at the tiny and very snowy hamlet of Névache.

 

The weather was remarkably warm for early January - Névache has a reputation for being one of the coldest alpine villages in France - but this week even out of the sun we weren't really cold.

 

We did 5 days of good walks which took us to many fine vantage points, climbing up above the tree-line on either side of the beautiful Val Clarée. A rest day mid-week allowed for muscles to reccover as well as a visit to the fascinating fortress town of Briançon.

Fun and enthusiastic people made this week a really inspiring start to the season for me.

 

Photo: Geoff Armstrong





Happy Christmas!

Sunset on the Dentelles de Montmirail, Provence

Whilst life in Provence continues to be mellow and very pleasant, winter has arrived in the Alps and it's going to be a good one.
There is an awful lot of snow, in some places too much at the moment, notably in the northern Alps, where the avalanche risk is very high.
Further south the recent snowfall has been more moderate, and this, added to the good base already established over the last few weeks, has given excellent conditions in the Val Clarée and Queyras regions, two of the best venues for snowshoeing.

So we dusted off the snowshoes and took ourselves over to the Queyras to check out some routes for this winter. This is a region that has long been on my list of places to visit, and it certainly didn't disappoint.

 



Wild shady valleys open up to high cwms and tempting cols, often with accessible peaks close by. There was loads of snow, most of it untracked at this time of year, and it was VERY cold!

It was a real pleasure to get out in these perfect winter conditions and rediscover the joys of snowshoeing. The views were magnificent, all new vistas that I will need to discover little by little.

Meanwhile, we mustn't forget it's Christmas! My friend and photo magician Bel Youngson has persuaded Zig, the Trekking in the Alps Mascot, to dress accordingly and she's come up with a lovely Christmas shot.

HAPPY CHRISTMAS!





Photo Bel Youngson