Courchevel Powder

Out hunting the powder again today, and after a false start trying to get over to Val Thorens and failing (wind) hooked up with Jonny and Ewan to head up the Aiguille du Fruit above Courchevel.

Ewan near the top of the climb:



The strong winds had already taken their toll and the snow was variable in the top of the couloir.

Ewan on the first few turns:



Jonny K:



As we got further down the snow slowly got lighter as we got out of the wind affected zone.





Jonny ripping it up:



Since the car was in Mottaret I made a detour via the Saulire to ski one of the Meribel couloirs that I hadn't been down before. There are a whole series of openings along the ridge at various points, and this one was interesting with a short 30m of sidelipping/jump-turning to negotiate some rocks, followed by a crucial left traverse to avoid going over a small cliff.



Bit more straightforward from here down, though still quite tight and not great snow.



These couloirs are rarely in great conditions due to catching a lot of sun, but are definitely worth seeking out to spice up a run back to the 'sunny side'. Looking back up into the couloir: