Ski France - Week 2

---

Week 2 – Les Menuires, 3 Vallees (11-18 March)

We immediately regretted our decision not to stay in Val for the whole two weeks. The last time we stayed in the 3 Valleys in 2015, we were in Meribel Mottaret. This time we decided to stay in Les Menuires, which is in one of the other valleys. First impressions? I don’t like it. We knew it would be ugly because it’s purpose built (aka ugly apartments rather than cute chalets) but the way it’s spread out with buses that only run every 20 mins, compared to every 5-8 mins in Val, makes it difficult to get around. Add to that the fact that whilst it snowed in Val, it rained in the 3 Valleys and as a result, the slopes at 1850m are a patchwork of grass and snow, compared to Val’s 1m of snow at the same altitude. Our on-snow accommodation isn’t even ski-in anymore!

Sunday was a horrible day for skiing. All the inter-resort connections were closed so we could only ski in the valley where we were staying. As a result, we only had 5-6 lifts to choose from, and circa 20 runs, and the queues were 40-60 mins long on 2 of the gondolas, since no one could exit the valley. The runs themselves were over crowded and chopped up by 11am. The conditions were further complicated by thick cloud so we couldn’t see contours or people, and slushy snow that’s getting it’s spring melt on. We only lasted 1.5hrs and 5 runs before we called it quits and went to lunch.

Monday was a great day in Val Thorens as their snow was still in good condition and there were a number of runs that we enjoyed, Tuesday was abominable with a snow storm so there were horrendous winds and a white out. We ventured out to find sheltered places but there were none and after making our way down a long, steep run that we couldn’t see, we went home.

Wednesday was the bomb! We’d had over 40cm of snow on Tuesday with cold temperatures so the newly groomed runs on Wednesday were powder squeaky. In fact, it didn’t matter whether you were on a run or not – everywhere was skiable. We had an awesome day carving up both on and off piste. The locals told us the it was the best day of the season.

Thursday, we rode up the Pointe de la Masse first thing in the morning and had our run of the day from top to bottom – 1000m of vertical. I revisited my picnic table where I usually meet Jesus every night for quality prayer time. We went to Meribel and refamiliarized ourselves with some of the runs we did in 2015, had lunch at Mottaret for old times sake, and by mid-afternoon it was getting scraped and slushy so we were done by 3.30pm.



Friday was the end of the ski trip and also the end of the good snow. You know it’s Spring skiing when you hear constant running water next to your chalet from the snow melt and all the birds and budding flowers are emerging from their winter solstice! We still managed to find great snow over in Courcheval. We re-skied the red run we’d blindly done during the snow storm and then ventured over to Mont Vallon, which I’d say is one of the hairiest peaks to ski. It’s 2900m and only has 2 red runs coming down either side of it – they are steep and narrow and best done in the morning when the snow is still fresh. So we did that and then went to Courcheval for cruisy blues until mid-afternoon. It was such a great way to finish our ski trip.

For those of us not skiing, Mum and Dad used the chairlift system on Monday to visit Saint Martin de Belleville and Meribel, they hiked the valley floor on Wednesday soaking up the fresh powder scenery and chatting to locals on the trails. On Thursday they satisfied their inner thrill seeker on a 1.8km zipline in Val Thorens, as well as rode lifts to the peaks of Cime Caron and Mont Vallon. Friday they took it easy with an apres-ski hot chocolate and some final patisserie items. They’ve had a good couple of weeks in the mountains and are amazed at how vast the Alps are, but I think they’re ready to move on to a change of scenery.

In summary, we have had 2 weeks of fabulous skiing, being blessed with the best falls of the season in each resort. We really could not have timed it any better. We skied 10 out of a possible 12 days and had 4 perfect ski days with plenty of powder and blue skies.

---