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The view from............ Val d'Isere and the Espace Killy

 Poster: A snowHead
Poster: A snowHead
That's a shame. The Tignes webcams had awesome-looking sunshine whenever I snuck a look.
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 Obviously A snowHead isn't a real person
Obviously A snowHead isn't a real person
... yea James the Last even though we are so close to Tignes the weather can be somewhat different to one another. I remember on occasion last year the Fornet / Pissailas glacier area in Val got about 40cm overnight and NOTHING at all on the Solaise mountain (let alone snow anywhere else in Val or Tignes for that matter)... weather is a funny old thing sometimes!
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 Well, the person's real but it's just a made up name, see?
Well, the person's real but it's just a made up name, see?
Thanks for the report and the pictures Steve Angus. Sorry to hear the bluebird never materialised for you. I also checked out Tignes webcams a few times and all seemed good there. Hope you get a better day tomorrow!
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Quote:

everytime she came past was singing to herself

snowHead I love hearing little kids singing to themselves, just having a ball.
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 Anyway, snowHeads is much more fun if you do.
Anyway, snowHeads is much more fun if you do.
....for fear of stitching my prediction up for the day............ but there does appear to be not a cloud in the sky as the sun is rising this morning.... dare I say for the second day running that it could (WILL) be a bluebird?????????

Don't hold me to my word but fingers crossed im correct for Val d'Isere today...

Snow-forecast.com are still forecasting sun all the way through until Wednesday bar the odd cloud or two tonight but nothing serious.

WE ARE SET FOR XMAS AND NEW YEAR 100%!!!!

STOP PRESS: Just heard a chopper overhead so its certainly OK to fly so that's a good sign!
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Just had a look at Tignes webcams - WOW!!!
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Then you can post your own questions or snow reports...
Steve Angus, enjoy your day on the slopes... sounds like you deserve it.

I'm gong for 14 skiers on the white rabbit snowHead
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 After all it is free Go on u know u want to!
After all it is free Go on u know u want to!
Looking very warm from the forecast on the Val website rolling eyes
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Just back in IT WAS A BLUEBIRD OUT THERE - simply glorious.

Will do a full report in a while but just realised I never let everyone know how many skiers were in the photo from yesterday in the off-piste on the white rabbit... anyway the answer was 8 people I could see in the trees...

Merry Christmas Eve Eve.... til the report with some awesome photos later on.
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Steve Angus wrote:
Just back in IT WAS A BLUEBIRD OUT THERE - simply glorious.
Then why are you back in so early? Smile
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snowHeads are a friendly bunch.
NickB.....because (and without sounding a little strange) when you ski pretty much all the time and year round you a) get enough time to enjoy the conditions b) you want to conserve energy when you can and take an afternoon off, c) being peak season at the moment I am pretty much go, go, go and it is knackering to be honest with you and d) like anyone in this world we have other stuff (paperwork, washing, the gym, cooking, cleaning, watching tv) that needs doing at some stage.

Over 300 weeks of skiing under my belt over the years for me the joy is in teaching others therefore when I am not teaching others I don't tend to ski that much!

That was why I came back 'so early' to use your phrase!
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 And love to help out and answer questions and of course, read each other's snow reports.
And love to help out and answer questions and of course, read each other's snow reports.
Steve Angus, quality not quantity Happy
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 So if you're just off somewhere snowy come back and post a snow report of your own and we'll all love you very much
So if you're just off somewhere snowy come back and post a snow report of your own and we'll all love you very much
Steve, Mounta1nGoat and I should be arriving in Tignes tomorrow, hope you haven't used up all the good stuff Toofy Grin
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 You know it makes sense.
You know it makes sense.
Anyway today was GLORIOUS...

It started, continued and ended sunny. It was also pretty warm...

The kids made it onto the village chairlift today and LOVED it - bravo. I always find that having a line of kids that you have taught from scratch follow you down even the easiest of runs by the end of the week is one of the most exhilarating and rewarding things one can do in this game.


Even waiting for the bus this morning the peaks were calling out to be skied after being hidden away under snow storms / clouds for weeks on end - it was quite empowering.


Val d'Isere on full show... stunning.


End of week lovely lunch at the Fruitiere (thank you to my clients)... the Folie Douce started to 'warm up' for the first time today as the sun came out. I would recommend the food at the Fruitiere - not cheap but yummy. If you want to eat there then you HAVE to book a table well in advance.

After a couple of nice glasses of wine in the sun, home and a snooze I have just been to the gym.... working off the turkey before I even eat it - getting ahead of the game here.

It is still nice and cloudless out there this evening and obviously temperatures are dropping hard overnight but it should still be sunny tomorrow (for the most part) which is a relief as it is a big day on the roads - 18000 vehicles forecast between moutiers and bourg (that is about 50% more than a normal day and 25% more than a typical transfer day!). Geneva run tomorrow and THEN THE PARTY STARTS but looks like I will have to teach on Xmas day.

2 more sleeps kids......................

Take care if you are on the way over tomorrow and ill try and get a nice photo or two tomorrow when I get back into town tomorrow to accompany tomorrows post!
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 Otherwise you'll just go on seeing the one name:
Otherwise you'll just go on seeing the one name:
Ok, I am heading out to the 3V next week, so why is this the first thread I visit? Might be something to do with VDI being my favourite resort. And that Folie Douce photo and your mention of the Fruitere has made me miss it all the more!

Have an amazing christmas out there! I might manage to get a cheeky second week in before the season is out!
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 Poster: A snowHead
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looking forward to being in one of those 18000 vehicles.... have a good one... maybe see you in the Folie Douce???? Happy
h.
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Obviously A snowHead isn't a real person
STOP PRESS the 'chance of a small snow shower or two overnight' forecast that everyone around here normally ignores looks like it has come true... not too much fresh overnight but a with few cm's but a few blasts of wind.

However still a pretty darn nice looking week ahead - perfect for a cracking New Year (albeit a tad warm at some points).



Ok really must get on the road...
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 Well, the person's real but it's just a made up name, see?
Well, the person's real but it's just a made up name, see?
...tough conditions driving down the mountain (snow) followed by rain, rain and rain all the way to Geneva... just when you thought it could not get any worse the parking took ages to get a spot... I was bursting for the toilet... as soon as I got inside the terminal building I saw John (our next guest in our chalet this week)... so I pretty much turned around and came straight home again.

MADE IT HOME PHEW about 30 minutes ago.

It certainly cleared up this afternoon and the small amount of fresh stuff was very modest by comparison to what we normally have been receiving recently.

So this is it folks Christmas Eve.

MERRY CHRISTMAS

Off out for dinner ce soir, a few beers then teaching in the morning before Xmas dinner - which is always the highlight of my day!


It was not much fun driving down the hill this morning - I have a 4X4 and chains (they were not on this morning) but no snow tires but there were some people who had nothing which was distressing watching them trying to drive down a mountain road without killing themselves!

...in haste as am late for dinner.
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Steve Angus, have a great Christmas Day and thanks for the report Very Happy
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Anyway, snowHeads is much more fun if you do.
Steve Angus, Thanks for all the updates out in your bit of the mountains first thing I look at when I log on

HAVE A GREAT CHRISTMAS
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Steve Angus, Great reports, have a merry merry Xmas ( don't have to wish for a white one !!)
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Then you can post your own questions or snow reports...
Quote:

I was bursting for the toilet... as soon as I got inside the terminal building I saw John (our next guest in our chalet this week)... so I pretty much turned around and came straight home again.

MADE IT HOME PHEW about 30 minutes ago.

You drove all the way back to Val D'Isere without having a pee? Shocked

that's a fantastic photo. Road conditions here were bad today - fair bit of new snow, and they hadn't cleared away the old very well. came the nearest to needing chains that I have yet.

Have a great holiday, thanks for such entertaining reports.

And give the gym a break, maybe. It's Christmas!
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 After all it is free Go on u know u want to!
After all it is free Go on u know u want to!
Steve Angus wrote:

It was not much fun driving down the hill this morning - I have a 4X4 and chains (they were not on this morning) but no snow tires .


Be careful mate, a 4x4 is worse than a car down hill, no winter tyres, you need to sort that.
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Looking good for tomorrow Toofy Grin snowHead
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Ski the Net with snowHeads
Steve Angus, have a great Christmas Day Smile
Thanks for the blog so far this season - it's a wonderful read and long may it continue snowHead
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MERRY CHRISTMAS EVERYONE

Got my santa hat at the ready - see if I can persuade my morning lesson to pose with the hat on for photo of the day.... ha haa..... its gonna be a lovely and clear day out there and after a VERY chilly night it should warm up nicely today.
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 And love to help out and answer questions and of course, read each other's snow reports.
And love to help out and answer questions and of course, read each other's snow reports.

... my client this morning getting very festive. Have a great one folks..... of to gorge myself now. Ill leave you with this awesome view of Val d'Isere on the way down this lunchtime.

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 So if you're just off somewhere snowy come back and post a snow report of your own and we'll all love you very much
So if you're just off somewhere snowy come back and post a snow report of your own and we'll all love you very much
SURVIVED... but feeling somewhat stuffed to the max. Yummy food. Hope everyone enjoyed themselves too!

Looks like Boxing Day will bring sun, average temperatures and little wind - just perfect conditions really.

Weather wise nothing particularly interesting forecast for the next few days but to be honest with so much snow over the last few weeks I think everyone is looking forward to enjoying what the gods brought us!

Enjoy the indigestion!!!
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 You know it makes sense.
You know it makes sense.
Steve. I notice you are driving to Geneva quite regularly. What's the quickest route? Is it taking long? About to set off on NYE for first time (from Geneva) and local advice is aways welcome.
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 Otherwise you'll just go on seeing the one name:
Otherwise you'll just go on seeing the one name:
Hi Markoncarp - yep I drive the route each Saturday taking our guests to / from Val d'Isere / Geneva Airport - we include a free private transfer in all bookings in our little chalet.

Anyway 'quickest' / 'shortest' / 'easiest' / 'cheapest' are all very different things. The shortest distance wise which is almost the quickest and certainly the cheapest (no tolls etc to pay) is:

Airport...onto the motorway bound for France.... come off at directions to Perly.... follow signs to Annecy on the green signed (non-motorway route), when you get to Annecy follow signs to Albertville.... then when you get to Albertville there is really only one way and that is Moutiers, Bourg St Maurice, Val d'Isere - this is not the 'easiest' route though! It is 112 miles that route each way and I have done it in 2.32 minutes before and I would guess on a busy school holiday transfer day you would be doing well to do it in less that 3.15 hours.... less than 3 hours is my average but amount of traffic is a major consideration as it can get bloked up between Abertville and Moutiers and then slow going from there all the way to Val.

If you want it 'easy' then take the motorway from the airport all the way to Annecy and then follow the route I mention above. Little tip - stop at Mcdonalds in Albertville - it is over half way and you drive right past it.... stop in Super U in Bourg for a fill up of food as it is cheaper down there.

Good luck - may see you on the road as ill be driving it that day.

Steve
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BUSINESS AS NORMAL... in the Val d'Isere mountains each day from November through to May and today it was simply that... peak season and the momentary pause for Christmas Day was over. Despite the indigestion the slopes were relatively busy (it is peak season after all!) but there were hardly any queues anywhere which is always nice.

I spent the day doing two 'intro to off piste' sessions - people who have not done much / any off piste. One session in the morning and the other in the afternoon. Both were quite fun even though all the 'easy' and near to the piste off piste was tracked out. The snow conditions varied from wind packed to wind-crust to sun-crust and in other area there were some lovely pockets of fresh (but wind deposited) stuff... however the Tour de Mont Roup and East Face of the Charvet all looked in excellent condition... I was jealous of some of the lines being put in. I spent the day on the Solaise side of things and the sun certainly shone as the name implies.

It was a fun morning and afternoon even though we did not find too much 'soft and deep' stuff left.... Val d'Isere is certainly popular for the off-piste so it goes pretty quickly... unless you know where to look. The clients were surprised that I managed to find some of the nice stuff so lots of smiles on faces.

A quick Vin Chaud at the Grand Marnier Bar (thanks Dave and Sue) finished the day off nicely as the sun set.

Dave has the coolest new gadget... goggles that have a heads up display in them telling you speed, altitude etc etc etc - VERY VERY VERY cool - I want some.


Fantastic conditions on the Solaise... lots of kids with new Christmas toys to play with (both young and old!)


Dave who was on a board today - stopped a little early in the powder (I told him to keep his momentum going) and found walking through waist deep pow tough going but much fun!

Right... turkey sandwich time me thinks!
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Obviously A snowHead isn't a real person
WARM was the word of the day.... after so many weeks of either wind, snow or outright cold temperatures it almost felt like Spring today. I DEFINITELY over-layered it. I am known as a bit of a wimp with the temperatures and recently I have been going out with 6 or even sometimes 7 layers... today 5 or possibly 4 would have done the trick - ohh well.

The slopes were a little busier today than they have been recently but the lift system coped admirably and the longest lift queue was barely 5 minutes... bravo to the STVI an STGM for the millions of € they have invested over the years to make the Espace Killy lift system one of the worlds very best!


Wonderful views from the Tommeuses chairlift out towards the 'Familial' off-piste route and Mont Blanc in the distance - simply stunning.

I was on the piste all day - strong red run skiers in the morning (nice family - two more sessions with them this week) and then a snowboarding lesson in the afternoon - a little bit of freestyle was in order - loads of fun actually.

The forecast for the rest of the week as you can see below is for one more day of sun and then another weather system sweeping in looking to bring with it another 30cm of snow... perfect to top everything up once again as the off-piste has almost all been tracked out - you need to go out as far as the Tour de Mont Roup really to get some nice turns in.

Another 10 days of hard school hols slog to go then things get a little quieter in January and I may get some ski time of my own in - we shall see.

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 Well, the person's real but it's just a made up name, see?
Well, the person's real but it's just a made up name, see?
A very enjoyable day....

The sun was shining once again although there were hints of a change in the weather on the way (some very thin high altitude cloud).

The morning lesson was really good especially with the video analysis which helped clarify a couple of points I was trying to make to the clients.

The afternoon... well it was like chalk and cheese really.... two young guys in their twentys. One in the peak of fitness (attempting to make it into the Marines) and the other.... rather less so - both friends with a few days skiing under their belts but rather a lot still to learn. We had a good laugh and full credit to them both they made great improvements in a short period of time (although the less fit of the two of them was absolutely shattered by the end!).


The sun rising above the mountains at 9+++ am this am. This photo shows some serious scouring on the bare patch in the middle of the photo thanks to some high winds we had at altitude the other week. However people are still finding some nice patches of powder if you are prepared (and know where) to hunt.


Thanks to Radio Val d'Isere for this awesome photo of last nights torchlite descent down Le Face - now where am I in the line............... haa haa.

The forecast is still for a change of weather tomorrow and thickening cloud leading to significant snowfall over the next few days and into the weekend.... wait and see!
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Coming to val 7 jan can you recommend ski instruction for 10and 12year old girls and ski hire any advice welcome



2Steve Angus,
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Hi darencoch ... are you thinking group or private lessons? Do you want daily sessions (Monday 9th - Friday)? Mornings or afternoons? Do you want NATIVE English speaking instructors or simply lessons 'conducted in English' (individual schools interpretation of what that means can vary widely I do warn you)? Sorry for so many questions in reply but there are many very good recommendations (i'd like to think) that vary depending on exactly what you are looking for.

As far as ski hire is concerned then I would ALWAYS recommend Snowberry.... European Ski Hire Shop of the Year. Good service, good equipment and the best thing is you can leave your kit there overnight (saves having to lug it back to the chalet or wherever you are staying and during the day they will store your shoes.... EASY life. You won't need to hire in advance.... otherwise id recommend Intersport on the main hire street (Pitte Sport) right next to the Tourist Office.

Steve
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Steve Angus wrote:
You won't need to hire in advance....


But if you do, you will make a significant saving!
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Then you can post your own questions or snow reports...
Scampi Dellahanti wrote:
Steve Angus wrote:
You won't need to hire in advance....


But if you do, you will make a significant saving!


Yes thank you Scampi Dellahanti I forgot to mention that.

Anyway today was all change, change, change.

We awoke to grey skies, snow and a change of scene from the warmth and sunshine of the last few days...



The morning I decided to stay low in the La Daille and we worked on some piste technique.... (low and behold the clients managed to get the hang of ollies - great drill for moguls.... which is rare as most people can never get the hang of it... so that was nice).

The afternoon was FUN as I had two young lads who (on paper) wanted an introduction to off-piste but they were pretty strong skiers so it was more of 'performance off-piste blasting'.... in three hours I managed the obligatory safety talk at the top of the Olympic (not the best place to do it as it was quite cold and windy - sorry lads but it needed to be done), the Familial which was in great nick, the Vallee Perdu to the bottom which was fun, the Tour de Charvet (see photo below) and then the Super S which was AMAZING. In some places it was sun affected from the last few days and in others wind affected but in general it was good snow all round.

We had perhaps 5cm's of snow in places today and lots more snow is forecast over the next 48 hours - some reports say up to another metre - hmmmm we shall see - but it is still snowing out there.

Off to the gym to expend the last of my energy then out for dinner - my gf's parents last night - so some yummy food.


we pause to catch our breath on the Tour de Charvet - Matt looks like the grim reaper here but believe me he rocked this afternoon - well skied.
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 After all it is free Go on u know u want to!
After all it is free Go on u know u want to!
BREAKING NEWS Its SNOWING.... again.

Looks like it has been going heavily all night long and the ploughs are back out there on the road... In the mornings darkness it is hard to tell but it DOES NOT look like there is much wind accompanying the snow which is good news.

...better get out there in it!
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Hi Steve.

Loving the posts. We are out in val on the 7th. We are a group of 12 with 2 people who have never been before. 1 is a skier 1 is a boarder. Could you recommend any ski schools for the skier? I think the boarder just wants a few lessons would that be easy enough to get out their?

Cheers Olly
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Hey dougals69. Welcome to Snowheads.

7th January is lowish season so you may be OK in sorting lessons out when you arrive but to be sure of getting what you want it is better to book in advance. Same questions as I asked before:

Quote:
Hi darencoch ... are you thinking group or private lessons? Do you want daily sessions (Monday 9th - Friday)? Mornings or afternoons? Do you want NATIVE English speaking instructors or simply lessons 'conducted in English' (individual schools interpretation of what that means can vary widely I do warn you)? Sorry for so many questions in reply but there are many very good recommendations (i'd like to think) that vary depending on exactly what you are looking for.


There are a lot of options.... let me know and ill answer in more detail and help as best I can.


Steve
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