The tourists have added a new annoyance to their tooting and barging: stabbing with their poles. Twice in as many days last week I was inadvertently (hopefully) whacked with skiers’ poles as they sat themselves down at the start of …
Last night, La Clusaz held its annual carnival, with groups dressed in 70s disco outfits, cops and prisoners, Star Wars characters, Cleopatras being carried by mummies, various superheros, and even a ladybird. The parade is held early so that kids, …
The influx of holiday-makers during French school holidays is obvious both in St Jean de Sixt (excessive tooting, car alarms sounding, drivers not stopping for pedestrians at crossings, general agro) and in the ski stations of La Clusaz and Le …
Amongst much fanfare from the schoolkids (the blue flags on the left) and the ski instructors (the red dudes on the right) and the general public (everywhere else), Nicolas Sarkozy visited La Clusaz yesterday. If his entourage had been in …
Pictured is the door to a very special tipi (or teepee if you prefer). Sitting next to a piste by the Merdassier area of La Clusaz, with a drag lift taking skiers up beside it and surrounded by a few …
Just a few posts ago, I was talking about people who like gadgets such as pole clips. Imagine my surprise when I a man entered the same télécabine/bubble/gondola/egg (choose your preferred word for the enclosed ski lift) as me with …
Pictured is a very good friend of mine who loves paragliding. A few years ago, he couldn’t ski, but he was motivated to learn so that he could see the winter scenery of La Clusaz in all its glory — …
Every winter, La Clusaz advertises moonlit skiing if there’s a full moon. When the conditions are right, it’s good fun. Take this photo from a few years ago as an example. It was warm enough to take lots of photos, …
January is traditionally a quiet month on the slopes in the French Alps: school holidays are over and everyone is recovering financially from Christmas, leaving the mountain to the locals and the seasonnaires to play on as a result of …
Pictured is a plastic contraption, dating back to 1983, that a friend found when cleaning out her chalet. I loved it, and she kindly gave it to me. It’s the most curious map I’ve ever seen. Yes, it’s a map. …