Let me put some blue sky and snow into your life in the middle of the endless wet spell that is the UKs weather at the moment.
My annual ski trip to the Three Valley's in the French Alps.
Off to a good start with nice clear views over the UK from the flight to Geneva, here looking over Birmingham.
South Coast of England and the Isle of Wight.
Lake Geneva and the Jura. I don't think I've ever landed at Geneva from this direction before. Luckily our pilot didn't make the same mistake as en Easyjet pilot a few weeks earlier when he had to abort his landing after being told by Air Traffic Control that he was far too low and close to the water!
I like this shot as I managed to get the shadow of the plane on the ground below.
Our now regular stop off in Annecy for lunch.
Warm enough to dispense with a jacket and it rained for most of the drive to the resort and was still raining at 1800m when we arrived, never a good thing in a ski resort as it turns the snow to wet mush which then freezes bone hard overnight.
First ski day was beautiful though.
Snow low down was icy as hell but up top it was still in good shape. This was top of our favourite long run down to St Martin de Belleville.
Eating is of equal importance to skiing on these trips. The slightly warmer weather, while not great for snow conditions does mean you can eat outside in the sunshine.
Sun sets on our first day.
Mont Blanc towering over the rest of the Alps.
Like last year it was a week with nothing in the way of fresh snow but plenty of sunshine by way of compensation.
As the years go by I find skiing in fresh powder tougher on the legs so I don't miss it all that much. Just being out in the sunshine and clear air is more than enough for me.
Another of our favourite lunch stops with a fine sunny terrace overlooking the slopes.
THO and MM at the end of another day's skiing.
One of my favourite end of day views as the sun casts shadows on the mountains.
We had a couple of gorgeous mornings with pink skies.
These are taken from the apartment balcony.
A new find for lunch - a fantastic burger place on the slopes with another sunny terrace.
Evening sunset.
Taken from a walk up the hill to do some shopping.
I say shopping but it was a lame excuse to head to our much frequented little local bar for a couple of early evening beers.
The Minchin brothers.
The view from the top of the slopes before we head down to the apartment at the end of the day
And yet another food consumption photo!
The slopes of Val Thorens, one of Europes highest ski resorts.
MM, THO and the Aiguille du Peclet.
THO and Mont Vallon.
More eating!
After which we did actually do a little skiing!
On our last day we stopped off at the top to admire the views before the final run down. As the lifts stop running and everyone heads home its a beautiful and peaceful spot. We stayed for half an hour and would have stayed longer but the lift attendants make you ski down before it gets dark for safety reasons.
It was a great way to finish the trip and the first time we've ever done it. I think we'll be doing this more often in future.
A nice, clear sunny day for our flight home. A view of the CERN complex especially for the Prof.
The Jura mountains.
The Alps laid out in full behind Lake Geneva.
And low clouds and mist fill the valley's
Another memorable trip in great company.
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