The big blue...

We are part-way through the 2019 february half term chaos, and 2 weeks in to a big high pressure system which has given blue skies and mild temperatures.
Despite both of these factors there has still been some good skiing to be found. Last week with Alex we managed to ski some good cold snow, with a minimum of walking to get there. It looks like there may be a change on the way for the weekend - fingers are firmly crossed!

3 Valleys Off Piste coaching - Feb 19

2 weeks into an a March heatwave it seems like a long time ago we were skiing cold powder in a storm, but it was only 2 weeks... I had a great week coaching and guiding a group from the Eagle Ski Club. Based in Bozel, we skied mostly in the 3 Valleys, with conditions going from one extreme to the other- -10C and hiding in the trees from the storm on Monday to +10C and afternoon slush by the Friday!

2 weeks later and there is still cold snow to be found on shady slopes, with good spring snow on sunnier aspects if you can get away from old ski tracks and get the timing just right!

Maurienne Off Piste Improvers 2019

The first week of February saw this year's Off Piste Improvers course running in the Maurienne valley.

After a cloudy and snowy start hiding in the trees on day 1, day 2 gave us this:

Powder & sun? Why not...

The rest of the week continued in a very similar vein:

Many thanks to Peter & Kate, Malcolm & Judy, Ann and Sarah for a great week - see you next winter!

3 Valleys Powder extravaganza

As seems to be a theme this winter I am running way behind with the blog (not to mention answering my emails...!). A couple of weeks ago I was skiing with a team of mountain medics, and despite some wild weather at times and spicy avalanche conditions we have managed to do some great (and relatively safe) skiing:

Some good days to go high:

And some great days for hiding in the trees!:

Thanks to Hernàn, Stu, Colin, Bill, Ben & Morne for a great week - see you next winter!