Chamonix

February 14 – 18, 2013

Some people find the winter months cold and long – we love them as they bring snow, snowboarding… and this year – good friends for a visit!  We had heard Chamonix was the “Whistler of the Alps” so we knew we had to check it out… and who better to experience this amazing part of the Alps with than some of our very best friends!

Wigz arrived first and brought with him a major snow storm! After a few days of checking out some of the local mountains, the three of us made our way to Geneva to pick up Sarah and Chris for an epic weekend away in Chamonix!

Chamonix is the city that lies within the valley of several massive mountains and ski areas. Our first day we checked out the area called "Le Brévent". With the previous night's heavy snowfall we couldn't see much, but we got some sweet powder runs. Later that afternoon we met up with Max - a friend of a friend of Paul's who is a Chamonix local and took us up the Aiguille Du Midi gondola to take us down one last run for the day. Not only did the clouds open up to give us our first sneak-peek at the jagged peaks, but Max navigated us through an absolutely incredible run of untouched powder! Not bad for Day 1.

Day 2 brought the sunshine! We went up to the area called "Les Grands Montets". Although the gondola line was long, it was well worth it! Not only were the views of the Chamonix Valley and the surrounding mountains absolutely stunning, but we found quite possibly the best run of our lives, which we proceeded to circuit several times!

Wigzel's reflective goggles helped make for some very cool shots!

The jaw-dropping views from 3295m (10810 ft) resulted in one very long photo shoot! Say fromage!

I'm not sure what was cooler - the giant glacial ice cliffs in the background, or our white zinced-up lips!

One reason Chamonix is so popular is it's proximity to Switzerland and Italy. For Day 3 we decided to drive THROUGH Mont Blanc over to the Italian side and hit up Courmayeur. Since it was another blue-bird day, we got to enjoy some more spectacular views, including this glacier that looks like a frozen river flowing down the mountain.

Here's a shot from photo shoot number 15... it's hard not to take so many photos when you've got such good looking subjects! The scenery wasn't bad either.

Sunshine and powder make for a skiers paradise. Here is Sarah carving one of the most spectacular lines of the day!

We settled in for a delicious Italian lunch, and thanks to Sarah's near-perfect Italian we rustled up one of the best seats outside of the house! Pizza, pasta, and beer on a patio overlooking a view like this... we could get used to skiing in Italy!

Definitely a great way to wrap up our last day on the slopes together!

At night we would wander the streets of Chamonix village, and enjoyed some après-ski drinks at a few bars and pubs. On our last night together we shared a cheese fondue AND a raclette. We were almost in a cheese coma, but managed to survive the deliciousness!

One of the bars we checked out was the Micro Brasserie de Chamonix - a brewery run by Canadians, dripping with Canuck decor! We bought some MBC memorabilia - the perfect souvenir from an incredible ski vacation!

We were sad to say goodbye to Sarah and Chris, but the fun wasn’t over yet thanks to Wigz still having a few days left of his vacation to hang out with us!

Check out the rest of the photos here!

 

 

3 thoughts on “Chamonix

  1. Oh my gosh what an incredible trip we had!! Thanks for posting Koxy, soooo fun to relive the special memories. I wonder how Loup is?! All our love xoxoxo Sarah and Chris

  2. WOW ! such beautiful photography !! the skiing,
    the scenery and you all look fantastic ..
    A ski trip to remember !!
    Love,
    Father K (aka dad) .. makes me want to find my old ankle-
    length ski boots and find a ski slope :) xxoo

  3. Great pics Laur and Paul! We have such fond memories of the area as well. The photograph we bought in Chamonix as a souvenir is of Mont Blanc and l’Aguille du midi. Hiking the mountains in the summer is much different than skiing them in the winter. We will have to try the ski thing out sometime :) . Courmayeur is where we spent our rest day when trekking the Tour Mont Blanc….a hike you guys should still consider….we can send or bring you the guide book…:) seriously. Looking forward to visiting you in August and spending time in the Alps again!