It dumped every single day, what we lacked in sunshine was more than made up for with fresh powder each morning. Two of the days were far too windy which meant that a third of the lifts were shut but having a full Espace Killy pass meant that it wasn't too much of an issue. I preferred the runs overs in Val D'Isere but hated the town itself - in all fairness, it was the World Ski championships so the place was especially busy.
I've waxed lyrical about previous holidays here and here but I really relished every minute of this one. Hovering above the tree-tops in your chair-lift, it's as if the passage of time is somehow suspended when you're in the mountains amidst the frozen landscape. The pristine whiteness of the scenery like a blank canvas waiting for a burst of color. There's something really pure about the environment that makes you feel somehow cleansed and the world looks somehow simpler without the messy chaos of colors vying for your attention.
On our last night which also happened to be the chalet staff's evening off, Gruff and I went off in search of our calorie-rich, artery clogging raclette (Lucy, you may wish to look away now).
Good thing we piled on the extra protein too because the next day, we decided to get another day's boarding in before catching our night train back to Paris. It turned out to be our best day yet.
The chair up to one of our favourite runs was shut that morning but I spied some preparations to reopen so we made a quick dash over to stand first in line. The minutes ticked by, a long queue started forming behind us and we were all chomping at the bit - all I could think about however were the fresh powder lines awaiting us. When the chairs finally started operating 45 minutes later, it was a complete bun fight at the top as everyone struggled to quickly strap onto their boards, each man for themselves. It was pretty windy too and you could hear some people losing their way but it was one of the best, most exhilarating runs I've ever done, even the sun made a brief appearance. It was so worth the wait, I love the feeling of riding on powder, it almost feels like you're floating. We bombed down that 850m whooping and cheering, I tumbled twice and it didn't matter - I was buzzing on such a high when we got to the bottom, it had us beaming like idiots for the rest of the day.
What a perfect way to end an already fabulous week - Gruff and I barely managed to stay awake to pack our stuff and make our train needless to say, I was out like a light when my head touched the pillow.
