23rd of December and Christmas week has been keeping resort workers busy. This is the week that seassonaires are plunged into a week of semi strenuous work. Prior to this their only preparation was being droned on at in training meetings and meeting new friends whilst being under the influence of 10 Jagermeisters. Only after this week can a seasonnaire truly assess whether they can handle a chalet, shop, or hotel, full of expectant and demanding punters.

Firstly though how is the snow? Well the weather over the past week has been something of an enigma. At the beginning of the week temperatures were Arctic with the top of the mountain being subjected to -20 degrees every day. Then just two nights ago temperatures rose enormously with snow melting below 2000 meters bringing wet, poor quality snow, and rainfall. Following this dramatic change I awoke this morning to find fresh snow hanging in the trees and bushes of Le Praz (1300 meters). I am yet to see how the snow looks further up the mountain but I was disturbed by huge avalanche blasts early this morning which must be a good sign.

Courchevel could really do with some extra snow as well. The dumps that have occurred so far this season still haven’t been sizable enough to cover many of the rocks and undergrowth that were permanently covered last season. That isn’t to say though that there are not decent fresh lines to be had. You just have to look very very hard and expend some blood sweat and tears to find them. After an epic 2 hour boot pack hike along a ridge near the ‘Dou du Midi’ peak, myself and two other ‘Ski Higher’ boys (Ed and Nate) found very skiable deep snow. A few days prior to this we also put the first tracks of the season down the famous ‘Equinox’ face. Here are a few images: The helicopter was just checking we were ok!

In other resort news; it seems that there is a massive increase in mature seasonnaires this season. Throughout all the chalet companies it seems that cash rich middle aged couples are swapping their comfy English cottages for one last winter of mayhem before they pick up their free bus pass. This trend fueled by the economic downturn means that 18 year old puppies (young seasonnaires) are vying for precious dance floor space with fellow workers old enough to be their grandparents. This inevitably means that at some point seasonnaire couples with 40 year age gaps will be spawned! Oh the horror! And Oh the ensuing gossip!