Steep and Deep

A little bit of fun with the camera! A shortish video of the kids skiing at Grnad Montets, with a little bit of Le Tour thrown in for good measure!

Hope you enjoy watching it as much as we enjoyed making it!

Thinking about the summer

Winter is far from over, and we've got a few ski trips planned yet. But the odd glimpse of the sun, and a burning desire to get back on the bike, and we can't help but dream of long summer days...

Enjoy!

Mountain Biking in Chamonix from Jason Chambers on Vimeo.

With thanks to Jason for this clip. Check out his web site for more.

Summer is coming - hit the pool!

The summer season is pretty much here in the Chamonix valley, and some great news for fans of outdoor swimming pools. After a complete makeover and a prolonged period of closure, the open air pool in Chamonix is due to re-open in a couple of weeks time.

Chamonix pool? Who needs it when you've got your own!

The new facility includes a 50m pool, a second smaller pool with massage water jets and toboggans and a paddling pool with water games for the kids. Look out for the official opening on the 11th July. With the indoor pools as well, it's going to be a superb facility whatever the weather and I'm sure will see a few mid afternoon visits from us on the way back from an energetic walk or bike ride.

Of course, when you've got your own pool in the garden it does kind of spoil you!

For details of more summer news including the latest on the development of more mountain bike routes in the Chamonix Valley and the Nissan Outdoor Games click this link for the Chamonix Summer Newsletter.

Glacier des Bossons

Sitting on the balcony at the apartment in Argentière and looking down the valley the view of the Mont Blanc massif, with the Chamonix Aiguilles all lined up, is pretty sweet. The view of the Glencoe mountains from my house back in the Highlands is something special, but I reckon that this one probably beats it.

View from the balcony - 8am this morning!

But keep studying the view carefully, and its not long before you realise that one of the fascinations with it is a great bit tongue of ice, apparently spewing down onto the valley floor itself. You probably noticed it on your drive into the Chamonix Valley too; the Glacier des Bossons.

Taking 5 beneath the snout.

Reading up on it, the glacier is a popular place to go and get closer to the ice, with a viewing point serviced by a chair lift near to the snout. It also seems that it may well have the record for biggest vertcial fall on a glacier, coming down from the summit of Mont Blanc to try and touch the valley floor. And because of the sheer drop and its gradient (45 degrees on average) its also possibly one of the fastest moving at 200 – 250m in a year.

Ice creams are compulsory!

And to give an example of what this actually means in practice, crash an aircraft near the top and you’ll have to wait about 37 years for chewed up bits of it to be spat out at the bottom! At least, that’s how long it took for bits of the Malabar Princess to appear after crashing in 1950.

We parked up at the landing area of the former Olympic Ski Jump in Les Bossons. Actually felt quite ill just looking up at it. A cool walk up through the woods wound its way nearly 400m up to the café and viewpoint, though not before taking a little side trip into the valley beneath the snout.

The top of the Aiguille du Midi from the cafe - spot the cable car!

Sam & Jodie again faired well on the walk, taking it all in their stride, so to speak. When I tried to explain that when I was doing my O level geography all about glaciers I had to have a pretty good imagination, whilst they’re already old hands at glacier spotting, the point seemed to get lost. Ice creams seemed more interesting…

Chamonix Swimming Pool

Popped down to the swimming pool in Chamonix the other day. A nice break from 2 full weeks of skiing. And what a pleasure it was!

Coming up for air

Every week back home I try and get a half mile, maybe even a full mile, in at the pool in Fort William. But its a drag. Its an 18 mile drive to the leisure centre in Fort William and as there's only lane swimming available in the morning session, it inevitably means a crack of dawn start. But its good to get the day going.

So whilst at the pool with Sam & Jodie I popped into the big pool to try and sneak in a few lengths. First thing you notice is that the water's nice and cool - at 27 degrees, its 3 degrees cooler than the leisure pool. Next is the clarity of the water. With the sunlight coming down through the glass dome above, there's perfect end to end vision.

And then there's the view. Coming up for air on the outward leg, the view through the window is of the Dru. And coming up at the turn is a huge vista of the Aiguille Du Midi and Mont Blanc through the glass wall. How cool is that! Stunning! A far cry from the dark winter mornings back in Fort William!

If only I lived in Chamonix I'd swim like a fish...!