Monday, April 15, 2013

Sainte Foy: The Final Chapter but Most Definitely Not the End

[Insert cheesy cliché about how fast time has gone this winter season here]. But seriously. Winter is well and truly gone, with only our vampire-like skin and aversion to temperatures over 10°C to remind us of the two winters we've had to endure in a row (we say endure, but ya know...).We're over a third of the way through the adventure, which is rather scary, but the most exciting bits are yet to come fo sho! The more our summer plans have fallen into place, the longer the last few weeks of the season here have seemed to drag out... The road is calling.

This in no way means we haven't been getting up to our usual tricks in the Alps; it's been a rather full last few weeks. We were honored to have fellow traveler Bob enjoy the luxury of Sainte Foy for a week in early March. Between getting lost in the wolf-infested forests and narrowly escaping yetis in the backcountry of Sainte Foy, we're confident Bob wouldn't have survived a whole season here. Despite this he showed tenacity in the face of some fairly serious powder, and it was great to have him around. Stay safe out there son.

A few weeks ago we skiied at La Rosiere, a field that conveniently allows you to ski down into Italy. The novelty factor of doing this is pretty high, especially for folk hailing from a country where the next closest country is 1500km away. We made it to Italy just in time for pizza for lunch (obviously, what else) which was absolutely delicious. The only disappointment was not meeting anyone named Luigi.

We conclude that spending a ski season in the French Alps is potentially the best way to spend a winter in Europe. Economical, great company and of course a load of snow sports. It seems we were particularly lucky with the snow conditions this year, and we are eternally grateful to everyone who helped make it a fantastic time. A billion thank yous.



 Yeti huts in the Sainte Foy backcountry with Bob


 A very sad looking snowman with a very happy looking boy.


Bob struggles over a fallen tree, as it is the only way to cross the river and escape the hungry wolves (there are no wolves around here and the river was 30cm wide).
 Italia!
 Woohoo! Italian mountains look exactly the same as French mountains!
 Vorrei una pinta di birra, per favore? 

Most of the Auberge crew, making the most of warm spring temperatures.
 Will the chef, demonstrates his cooking prowess in the nature challenge. Don't use the mossy end of the stick, fool! Phoebe, looking very happy with her moss flavoured chicken.

 Woof hoooo! Finally getting down to a doggie level for Phoebe's 21st pressie from the staff!
The dogs were very well trained, but not quite well enough. Apparently it's not ok to leave dog poo in the snow.

The infamous onesie day. Very tight fitting onesies and dangerous jungle animals

Sometimes it's best not to ask.

The Fogliettaz, the mountain which is home to Sainte Foy ski field. Thanks for all the amazing memories. We will be back!


 Next time: The team splits; flying solo to Bourgogne and Tarifa.