 Poster: A snowHead
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The 09/10 season so far:
Wales - Between a Rock and a Soft Place
http://snowheads.com/ski-forum/viewtopic.php?t=59222
Upper Bavaria, Germany
http://snowheads.com/ski-forum/viewtopic.php?t=62376
Another family funeral, another trip over from the States for my brother Matt, and another chance to play as Matt looked after my Dad for the long weekend.
I'd been following the snow reports coming in from France, Switzerland and Norway, and with around 1.5m of fresh falling the previous 7 days plumped for Zermatt and Chamonix.
DAY 1: FRIDAY 15 MAY 2010
Flew from Cardiff to Geneva via Amsterdam with KLM on Friday afternoon under clear, sunny skies.
COST:
280.00 UK pounds r/t
327.00 euro r/t
404.00 US$ r/t
Got to Geneva at 21.45 and took a leisurely stroll to the train platform in Geneva airport for the journey to Montreux.
COST:
20.00 UK pounds o/w
23.00 euro o/w
28.00 US$ o/w
I was staying with Kath Lyon who I'd worked and lived with in Niseko, Japan back in 07/08. She's a teacher in an international school just out of Montreux.
Got to her lakeside apartment around midnight and after a bite to eat and a few drinks, we decided on Zermatt for Saturday and Chamonix for Sunday.
DAY 2: SATURDAY 16 MAY 2010
Early start to make the train to Zermatt. Got some looks as we walked in ski gear to the station.
COST:
80.00 UK pounds r/t
94.00 euro r/t
116.00 US$ r/t
Kath sorting through her gear on the platform.
The train ride was smooth and the valleys Swiss green
Got to the base of the cable car just before 10am to be told that only the t-bar and the 6-man chair were open and visibility was negligible.
The lady in the Tourist Info Centre quoted us 54 CHF for the lift ticket, but at the window we were charged 83 CHF for 4 hrs of operation.
I can understand 83 CHF for a day pass during peak season when everything is open but charging full whack when such limited terrain is open for just half a day is taking the wee wee at the very highest level.
COST:
51.00 UK pounds 4-hr lift ticket
59.00 euro 4-hr lift ticket
73.00 US$ 4-hr lift ticket
The snow underfoot was great with soft pistes and boot top pow just the other side of the piste markers.
I rented a pair of 170cm Atomic Race Ti skis (126-70-110). Fantastic skis.
COST:
20.00 UK pounds
23.00 euro
28.00 US$
It was great to be skiing again - despite having next to no visibility - and I'm glad that we went to Zermatt. But I'll never return based on being fleeced this time.
I skied Engelberg in May 06 and had much more skiing for less cost, so will go there if the opportunity for May turns arises in the future.
View of Zermatt on the way down. Best visibility of the day
Yours truly in the cable car
Kath in the cable car
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Obviously A snowHead isn't a real person
Obviously A snowHead isn't a real person
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sorry to hear you got bummed
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Well, the person's real but it's just a made up name, see?
Well, the person's real but it's just a made up name, see?
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Mike Pow, but surely the best is still to come....
Ps I live in Montreux too
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You need to Login to know who's really who.
You need to Login to know who's really who.
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Cool pics, dude. Especially the Bavaria ones.
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Anyway, snowHeads is much more fun if you do.
Anyway, snowHeads is much more fun if you do.
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BobinCH
Working through the Chamonix pics now.
Maybe next time.
boardiac and Whitegold
Thanks
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You'll need to Register first of course.
You'll need to Register first of course.
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DAY 3: SUNDAY 17 MAY 2010
Set off from Montreux at 7.30 am, Chamonix bound. Great drive over and got in to town at 9.
Picked up a pair of skis, Salomon Lord in a 177cm. The guy in the store was trying to get me to take at least a 185cm and almost had apoplexy when I asked for a ski similar to what I had in Zermatt the day before - an overshaped slalom ski in a 170cm.
COST: 22.00 UK pounds
26.00 euro
32.00 US$
Met Kristy, an Australian friend of Kath's who's been living in Chamonix for a couple of years, at the base of the Aguille du Midi cable car, and with a little bit of brazen queue jumping past a group of Indian and Japanese tourists we were at the top by 10am.
COST: 30.00 UK pounds
36.00 euro
44.00 US$
It was socked in when we first arrived, so we decamped to the cafe which was full of skiers and boarders waiting for a break in the weather.
Anticipating some blue we made our way down to the start of the arete and clicked in.
Kath and Kristy at the Aguille du Midi station
Kristy had suggested the Couloir des Cosmiques and we were more than happy to follow her down the arete and around. By all accounts being able to ski the arete was far better than walking it. The snow was soft, light and stable. The visibility great as we set off and it didn't take us long to get over to the entrance to the couloir.
A couple of groups had got in before us and one was in the crux rappeling down as we got our stuff together.
Kath and Kristy at the entrance to the Couloir des Cosmiques
Looking down into the couloir and the group ahead
We edged our way in one by one and we were all happy sideslipping, jump turning and skiing the upper section without the need to rope up. In comparison with pictures of the couloir I've seen the conditions were excellent. Very little rock showing through. I'd anticipated more exposure at the top, but the depth and quality of snow made it a very comfortable negotiation.
Kath edging her way through the rocks
Yours truly waiting on the group below
The rocks safely negotiated, Kath was ready to ski
By the time I'd put my camera away, the mist and fog had descended and the couloir was socked in. This was the theme for the descent. Wait around for the mist and fog to lift, ski a section, wait, and repeat.
Kath in the mist
Kristy finding untracked
Kath hitting sunshine
Kristy off exploring
Kristy got rocked out, but sent it, landed it and skied out smiling
Kath getting in on the action
From whence we came
There's a great pic of the Couloir des Cosmiques in its entirety in this link
http://www.summitpost.org/route/186837/couloir-des-cosmiques.html
The turns were great, with up to knee deep and face shots where it hadn't been tracked. The weather held for the traverse back to the Aguille du Midi mid-station. The track put in was excellent.
We'd traversed from right to left in this picture and there's an avalanche above and to the right of Kath
Kath and Kristy at the mid-station cafe
Kath doing her best King Kong with the Midi cable car
Took the cable car down, packed up the car and drove in to town for lunch in the sunshine.
Kath and I at the end of a fantastic day in Chamonix
Drove back to Kath's and enjoyed several gin & tonics on the balcony.
The view of Lake Geneva and the surrounding mountains from Kath's apartment in Montreux
Many thanks to Kristy and Kath. Chamonix delivered. If you're nearby, get the weapons of choice out and enjoy the fantastic conditions in Chamonix.
Last edited by You'll need to Register first of course. on Wed 19-05-10 23:10; edited 1 time in total
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holy ####! what a turnaround from the Zermatt experience. and great pics - what camera were you using?
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Thanks.
Canon 7D
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You'll get to see more forums and be part of the best ski club on the net.
You'll get to see more forums and be part of the best ski club on the net.
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Mike Pow, bee-yoo-tiful. Wish I could ski well enough to undertake such adventures. 
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Mike Pow, nice! What fantastic conditions in Cosmiques!
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snowHeads are a friendly bunch.
snowHeads are a friendly bunch.
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Mike Pow, excellent photos as always thanks. Really need to go and board the Cosmiques, very jealous.
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brian
brian
Guest
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Mike Pow, Wow! Looks superb. Not bad for 16th May...
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You know it makes sense.
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Thanks something to aspire to (in my dreams) 
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Otherwise you'll just go on seeing the one name:
Otherwise you'll just go on seeing the one name:
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Awesome stuff what an epic weekend. Just goes to show that some of the best stuff is still skiable in Cham in May and June when everyone else had packed up.
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Poster: A snowHead
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Mike Pow, fantastic TR, thanks for sharing.
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Obviously A snowHead isn't a real person
Obviously A snowHead isn't a real person
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Mike Pow & BobinCH, seriously, how 'easy' is it to ski the arete (if the snow is anything like reasonable)? If I can ski the Grand Enver and be well within my comfort zone then should I find the arete a 'comfortable' ski?
If i'm going to extend my season into late May/June then is skiing the arete the best/only option or do you still get groups, carrying skis, walking it in crampons and roped together (but without the fixed safety)?
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Well, the person's real but it's just a made up name, see?
Well, the person's real but it's just a made up name, see?
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midgetbiker, first time I've skied it was on Sunday and it was straightforward in the soft snow. A couple of our group Walked down with crampons but it took them ages and I'm sure it was easier on skis. Would probably be more intimidating if it was icy but I'd still ski it over walking.
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You need to Login to know who's really who.
You need to Login to know who's really who.
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Anyway, snowHeads is much more fun if you do.
Anyway, snowHeads is much more fun if you do.
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| BobinCH wrote: |
| midgetbiker, first time I've skied it was on Sunday and it was straightforward in the soft snow. A couple of our group Walked down with crampons but it took them ages and I'm sure it was easier on skis. Would probably be more intimidating if it was icy but I'd still ski it over walking. |
Agree 100%
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You'll need to Register first of course.
You'll need to Register first of course.
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very nice pics! I think another trip to Cham is on the cards...
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BobinCH & Mike Pow, thanks for the responses.
Got to say I'm far more comfortable in my skis than out of them. When I did the Pas de Chevre in March the snow cover was getting thin approaching the glacier level, we had to rope up and climb down a small section of rock band in order to access the exit couloir. The second I took my skis off I was ****ting myself, but the second they were back on I was a happy bunny again, and totally comfortable on the couloir itself (skis took a little punishment though).
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Brill - looks like so much snow at the top compared to many shots i have seen of it.
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FAQ
).
