February 25, 2004
My legs ache. My back is so stiff I can barely walk…and my smile muscles haven’t stopped cramping for the last four days.
The waiting game finally paid off, and the great snow conditions look like they are here to stay. Unfortunately, we are not: today is our final day of skiing before we pack up our stupendous amount of gear and head for Lyon airport bright and early tomorrow morning.
It’s probably a good thing that we will be getting a good, long rest on the flight home—we are all happily exhausted from what has been a PERFECT week of powder skiing and exploring into the deep dark corners of the French Alps. Many guided adventures have taken us to the far reaches of these beautiful mountains to enjoy the pristine February snow. What a great way to wrap up an amazing trip!
If you look closely in some of these photos, you may notice a strange orange tint to the snow: this week’s storm blew in from the south, and MAN, did it ever howl around here! So much so that it brought with it a layer of sand all the way from the Sahara Desert, depositing it in a tangerine coating across the French Alps. So bizarre that I had to share this unique occurrence! Skiing across these fluffy meadows of snow and realizing that I was in fact sliding across desert sands was certainly a first.
Also, check out the “concert” photos of Marty and Simon, our new ALPS rock band that performed to rave reviews in front of an international crowd last night here at the L’Hotel Edelweiss..... years from now they can look back and say “Yeah, we were HUGE in Europe, had a big fan club and everything!”
I hope you’ve enjoyed the adventures via the web, and enjoy the final shots. Homeward bound…we will see you all soon! Cheers, Nicole and Sam.
Feb 22, 2004
POWDER DAY!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
Wait around long enough and you will receive the goods. Today we experienced what we have been waiting for. After 2 days of being essentially confined to our hotel the sun broke out and we were skiing 16 inches of fresh! Life is good, just look at the pictures.
February 18, 2004
The lifts in La Grave are, well, French. First there is the telepherique, which is the gondola like conveyance that takes you up the majority of the mountain, topping out at 3200 meters. Then to attain the real top of the lift service terrain, one must ride the t-bars. These t-bars I speak of are running along the Girose glacier that adorns the saddle of La Meije, therefore they can not be permanently affixed to the surface upon which we ski. What the engineers have done is to fix the first set of towers to a cliff band that runs along the left side of the shorter run of t-bar. From this same cliff they have attached cables that stretch for a mile, suspended just above the surface of the glacier, which then terminate on the top of the saddle at such a point where they can be securely bolted to the protruding earth. This allows the second run of t-bar to be free from having no more than one tower that the crew must erect every year, drilling it into the surface of the glacier. Both the first and second run operate off the same continuous loop of cable, all very ingenious indeed. The track of the t-bar runs up the glacier, directly over the crevasse field that is created by the ice rolling over the convexities of the earth. These crevasses are filled in each year with snow, ice and hay so that the terrain does not swallow the passengers. However, we are told that the snow cats, which tend those upper slopes seem to find their way into a crevasse at least once a season. It does not get anymore French than that!
February 17, 2004
As you will see from the attached photos, the three “Dads” arrived three nights ago, and have infused a fresh perspective and some great stories into our nightly dinner gatherings.
Drew’s father Peter and Uncle Kip, along with Doug’s dad Hank have been grinning ear to ear ever since they stepped onto the scene. As Hank observed, you can’t really grasp how incredibly vertical the Haute Alps region is until you are standing here looking up at these gorgeous peaks. Now if they’d just make it SNOW!!
Outside of some interesting snow conditions that continue to keep our eyes tuned toward the cloudless sky, we are getting plenty of study time in. It’s hardly something to complain about when you realize our classroom has the best view in the world.
Today we spent the afternoon roaming the ancient walled city of Briancon. Colorful shuttered buildings and ominous cathedral spires tower over a funky tourist district filled with shops and sidewalk cafés.
BREAKING NEWS: As I finish up today’s journal, I’ve glanced outside to see some sort of strange white stuff falling from the sky. It’s a bird…it’s a plane…hey wait a minute: IT’S SNOW!
February 13, 2004
Today was day 3 of our avi course. We spent the morning in the classroom again revisiting much of the material that we had seen over the past two days. After that we took out the maps and plotted a tour for the day. We have been unlucky in the past week in that we have had no fresh snow, however if you are not going to have powder, corn is the next best option.
We have had freezing nights and hot days so the corn is starting to appear, and it's fantastic! You will note from our pictures that we took few (almost none) of actual descending due to the fact that it was so good we could not tear ourselves away from enjoying it fully. These are the kind of days that were made for touring, and if we are lucky we will have plenty to come.
One other note. You will see from our last update that there are pictures of Simon playing the guitar. Well, there was a couple guys playing the blues at the hotel the other night and upon finding out about his skills, they asked him to join in. Needless to say he did not disappoint and now he is the talk of the town.
February 12, 2004
Today we started our three day avalanche course. We have an American instructor who works for our chief guide, Gary Ashurst. The course is derived from materials put together by the American Institute for Avalanche Research and Education (AIARE). They provide instructors with uniform materials so there is a standard of education that is widely accepted. We are taking the level 1 course, which is about 24 hours of a mixture of classroom time and field work. Today we started out with three and a half hours of classroom time followed by four hours in the field and finally another 45 minute debrief back in the classroom. The level 1 course provides students with the basics of snow science as well as a huge dose of route selection, understanding avalanche terrain, avalanche rescue techniques and myriad of other pertinent info for the backcountry traveler. While in the field today we spent most of our time performing beacon searches and the remainder digging snow study pits, and learning basic stability tests. Our instructor was great, and the kids are looking forward to putting their newfound knowledge to work tomorrow on our tour.
February 8, 2004
Let It Snow (PLEASE!!!)
Even La Grave, with its well-earned reputation for epic powder skiing, can go through long and frustrating phases of not-so-excellent conditions. Patience is the order of the day (make that week), as we all stare longingly for the horizon, hoping to see a wall of storm clouds bearing down on the valley carrying a big, fat snowstorm with it.
Unfortunately, the wait for some fresh (see: SOFT) snow continues, which means the piste has remained a combo platter of wind-scoured ice and rocks. It has become painfully apparent why “La Grave” translates into “The Gravel” in Old French.
Making the most of what is in front of our ski tips, we have managed to adapt to the mountain’s cranky mood. Challenging the kid’s technical ability in adverse conditions has forced them to remain as flexible as this alpine weather, and when we can’t take much more of the bone-rattling surface, it’s time to focus on the cultural opportunities of the Haute Alps region.
Exploring the city of Grenoble was the call yesterday; first by inadvertently getting our two-car caravan detoured in the tangled web of European traffic patterns, then setting out on foot in the Old City Center. Our assignment to the kids: go explore with a partner or two, navigate your way through language and layout, and come back in a few hours with a good story to tell. Needless to say, everyone had a great day of surviving restaurant orders, postcard purchases (Hi Mom!) and each found something amazing and humorous to share about this cultural center of the French Alps.
--Nicole
