Cafe Lavancher

You can't beat a good coffee shop walk. There's nothing like a bit of fresh air and some gentle exercise to work up an appetite for a bit of coffee and cake, or perhaps an ice cream.

When I've been out running on the local trails I couldn't help but notice that a few little signs and posters had appeared, advertising a new cafe in Le Lavancher. Now, I have a bit of a soft spot for this little corner of the valley. Along with Montroc a little further up the valley, its elevated above the road and away from the hustle and bustle. As soon as you arrive there's a feeling of peace and calm that you can't get when you're closer to the main drag. Add to that some cockerels disturbing that peace, a few prayer flags flapping in the breeze and the wafting smell of wood smoke and you've got yourself a cracking little hamlet.

So, from the apartment its a short hop across to the Petit Balcon behind the Grand Montets telepherique station, and then a really nice walk down valley to Le Lavancher. Just long enough to get going and give the kids some exercise.

Cafe Lavancher can be found near the top of the village and provides breakfast, lunch and evening meal, plus those all important light snacks for habitual coffee shoppers such as ourselves. Free Wi-Fi and a very pleasant outdoor seating area also come as part of the service.

As does a skateboard. Just for if you get bored when you've podged yourself on ice cream!

Give them a call if you want to book dinner. Tel 04 50 90 83 36

If you want to avoid the (slightly) uphill walk back to Argentiere, then perhaps its worth taking a train timetable with you and heading down the path opposite the restaurant to catch a train from Les Tines. Perfect!

Jungle Gym

In the same way that when kids watch the pre Christmas TV ads and perpetually say "I want one", a similar cry may be heard when we see a brochure or an ad for one of those Jungle Gym/Treetop adventure thingies; "Can we go?"


We've had a go on a few now. But not in the UK. The kids aren't old enough, nor will they be for some time. And the quality of the French variety does vary a bit from mediocre to brilliant, though wee Sam inevitably ends up on the little one when he really wants to go bigger and higher.


And then we tried the one at Talloires, above Lake Annecy. Wow! It did say 3 to 5m above the deck come to think of it. Unlike most of the others we've been on, the 'smaller' course runs on one continuous cable, so there's no need to clip and unclip. This makes it much safer, and perhaps as a result they can push the boundaries a bit further.

The photos do the talking much better than I can, so have a look at the album on this link to my Facebook pages.

Admittedly, its a bit far for a day trip from the apartment in Argentiere but for aficienados of the Jungle Gym, perhaps it'll be worth the effort!